February 2015 Super Bowl XLIX: New England Patriots Defeated the Seattle Seahawks, 28 to 24
February 1, 2015 (Sunday)
Above: Getty Images photo of New England quarterback Tom Brady throwing against Seattle in Super Bowl XLIX in Glendale, Arizona, February 1, 2015; Getty Images photo of New England defensive back Malcolm Butler intercepting a Russell Wilson pass to seal the New England victory in Super Bowl XLIX, February 1, 2015
Above: Getty Images photo of Seattle running back Marshawn Lynch scoring a touchdown against New England in Super Bowl XLIX, February 1, 2015; Getty Images photo of New England receiver Rob Gronkowski catching a touchdown pass against Seattle in Super Bowl XLIX, February 1, 2015
Above: Getty Images photo of Katy Perry singing with Lenny Kravitz during the halftime show of Super Bowl XLIX in Glendale, Arizona, February 1, 2015; Getty Images photo of singer Katy Perry performing atop a giant lion during the halftime show of Super Bowl XLIX, February 1, 2015
Above: Getty Images photo of Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson throwing against New England in Super Bowl XLIX, February 1, 2015; Getty Images photo of New England quarterback Tom Brady passing against Seattle in Super Bowl XLIX, February 1, 2015; Getty Images photo of New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick (at left) celebrating the Super Bowl win against Seattle, February 1, 2015
"Through his childhood, Tom Brady considered Joe Montana his idol, and on Sunday he equaled the Hall of Fame quarterback with four Super Bowl wins to cement his legacy as one of the best to play the game.
The 37-year-old quarterback set a Super Bowl record with 37 pass completions to go along with four touchdown passes, but it was the poise he exhibited with the game on the line that truly showed his brilliance.
Trailing by three points with under seven minutes to play, Brady completed all eight pass attempts as he led the Patriots 64 yards in 10 plays, capped by a three-yard touchdown pass to Julian Edelman."
"The final 125 seconds included a perfect possession by Tom Brady for the go-ahead points, a juggling catch that could have been the play of the year, and a victory-clinching, end-zone interception on a pass — not run — from the 1.
A Super Bowl that got off to a slow start wound up with a 'Whoa!' finish, a lot like the New England Patriots' entire season.
Brady threw two of his four touchdown passes in the final quarter to erase a double-digit deficit, rookie Malcolm Butler picked off Russell Wilson's short throw while Marshawn Lynch watched, and the Patriots ended a decade drought without an NFL title by beating the defending champion Seattle Seahawks 28-24 in a taut classic Sunday night."
---Associated Press, February 2, 2015
The Dow Gained 1.14%
February 2, 2015 (Monday)
Above: Reuters chart showing a Dow Jones Industrial Average gain of 196 points, closing at 17,361 on February 2, 2015
ISIS Video Released Purportedly Showing Jordanian Hostage Being Burned Alive
February 3, 2015 (Tuesday)
Above: Reuters photo of student protesters in Amman, Jordan calling for the release of Jordanian pilot Muath al-Kasaesbeh from captivity by ISIS, February 3, 2015; AP photo of wife of Lt. Muath al-Kasaesbeh weeping during a rally, February 3, 2015
Above: New York Daily Newsphoto taken from video purporting to show Lt. Muah al-Kasaesbeh as deadly fire entered his cage
"Jordan hanged two Iraqi jihadists, one a woman, on Wednesday in response to an Islamic State video showing a captured Jordanian pilot being burnt alive in a cage by the hard-line group.
Islamic State had demanded the release of the woman, Sajida al-Rishawi, in exchange for a Japanese hostage whom it later beheaded. Sentenced to death for her role in a 2005 suicide bomb attack in Amman, Rishawi was executed at dawn, a security source and state television said.
Jordan, which is part of the U.S.-led alliance against Islamic State, has promised an 'earth-shaking response' to the killing of its pilot, Mouath al-Kasaesbeh, who was captured in December when his F-16 warplane crashed over northeastern Syria.
Jordan also executed a senior al Qaeda prisoner, Ziyad Karboli, an Iraqi man who was sentenced to death in 2008."
---Reuters, February 4, 2015
Western Initiatives in the Ukraine-Russia Conflict
February 5, 2015 (Thursday)
Above: Reuters photo of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry at Kiev, Ukraine airport, February 5, 2015; Reuters photo of President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko meeting with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry during a meeting in Kiev, Ukraine, February 5, 2015
Above: Reuters photo of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry shaking hands with Foreign Minister of Ukraine Pavlo Klimkin in Kiev, Ukraine, February 5, 2015; Reuters photo of U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel speaking at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, February 5, 2015
Above: Reuters photo of President of France Francois Hollande during a news conference at Elysee Palace in Paris, France, February 5, 2015; Reuters photo of a car moving in the opposite direction of a military tank in eastern Ukraine, February 5, 2015
Above: Reuters photo of Ukrainian tank being hauled near Debaltseve, Ukraine, February 5, 2015; Reuters photo of shelled building in Donetsk, Ukraine, February 5, 2015
"The leaders of Germany and France launched a new diplomatic initiative over Ukraine on Thursday, announcing they would fly together to Kiev and Moscow with a proposal to resolve the conflict that could be 'acceptable to all'.
The coordinated trip by Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Francois Hollande comes as rebels steadily advance on a railway hub held by Ukrainian troops after launching an offensive that scuppered a five-month-old ceasefire.
Washington has begun openly talking of arming Ukraine for the first time. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry also flew to Kiev on Thursday, although he had no plans to go to Moscow. His likely cabinet colleague, defense secretary nominee Ashton Carter, told lawmakers on Wednesday that he favored arming Ukraine's forces.
Peace talks collapsed on Saturday in Belarus, EU leaders are expected to consider punishing new economic sanctions against Moscow next week, and Germany hosts world leaders at a security conference over the weekend at which Ukraine is expected to be the main subject."
"In a new push for peace, the leaders of France and Germany headed Thursday to Kiev and Moscow with a proposal to end the fighting in eastern Ukraine. The surprise move appeared aimed at heading off U.S. considerations of giving Ukraine lethal weapons, something Europeans fear could spark even wider hostilities.
The flurry of high-level diplomacy comes as resurgent fighting in eastern Ukraine is threatening Europe's overall security.
In Moscow, President Vladimir Putin's aide welcomed the new European initiative and said the Kremlin was ready for a constructive discussion. NATO defense ministers in Brussels, however, were ready to boost the military alliance's forces in response to the fighting in Ukraine and Russia's increased military forcefulness.
Russia has vehemently denied backing the rebels with troops and weapons, while acknowledging that some Russians are fighting with the separatists. Western military experts scoff at the Russian denial. The top NATO commander, U.S. Air Force Gen. Philip Breedlove, said Thursday that Russia continues to supply the separatists with heavy, state-of-the-art weapons, air defenses and fighters.
Calling it a 'very critical moment in our history,' Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko on Thursday warmly welcomed U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to Kiev, the Ukrainian capital.
In a joint news conference after their talks, Kerry urged Russia to show its commitment to a peaceful, diplomatic solution to the conflict in eastern Ukraine by ceasing its military support for the separatists and bringing them to the negotiation table."
---Associated Press, February 5, 2015
President Obama Spoke at the National Prayer Breakfast
"But we also see faith being twisted and distorted, used as a wedge -- or, worse, sometimes used as a weapon. From a school in Pakistan to the streets of Paris, we have seen violence and terror perpetrated by those who profess to stand up for faith, their faith, professed to stand up for Islam, but, in fact, are betraying it. We see ISIL, a brutal, vicious death cult that, in the name of religion, carries out unspeakable acts of barbarism -- terrorizing religious minorities like the Yezidis, subjecting women to rape as a weapon of war, and claiming the mantle of religious authority for such actions.
We see sectarian war in Syria, the murder of Muslims and Christians in Nigeria, religious war in the Central African Republic, a rising tide of anti-Semitism and hate crimes in Europe, so often perpetrated in the name of religion.
So how do we, as people of faith, reconcile these realities -- the profound good, the strength, the tenacity, the compassion and love that can flow from all of our faiths, operating alongside those who seek to hijack religious for their own murderous ends?
Humanity has been grappling with these questions throughout human history. And lest we get on our high horse and think this is unique to some other place, remember that during the Crusades and the Inquisition, people committed terrible deeds in the name of Christ. In our home country, slavery and Jim Crow all too often was justified in the name of Christ. Michelle and I returned from India -- an incredible, beautiful country, full of magnificent diversity -- but a place where, in past years, religious faiths of all types have, on occasion, been targeted by other peoples of faith, simply due to their heritage and their beliefs -- acts of intolerance that would have shocked Gandhiji, the person who helped to liberate that nation."
---President Barack Obama, National Prayer Breakfast, February 5, 2015
"President Obama has never been one to go easy on America.
As a new president, he dismissed the idea of American exceptionalism, noting that Greeks think their country is special, too. He labeled the Bush-era interrogation practices, euphemistically called 'harsh' for years, as torture. America, he has suggested, has much to answer given its history in Latin America and the Middle East.
His latest challenge came Thursday at the National Prayer Breakfast. At a time of global anxiety over Islamist terrorism, Obama noted pointedly that his fellow Christians, who make up a vast majority of Americans, should perhaps not be the ones who cast the first stone."
"Yemen's powerful Shiite rebels announced on Friday that they have taken over the country and dissolved parliament, a dramatic move that finalizes their months-long power grab.
The development also plunges the impoverished country deeper into turmoil and threatens to turn the crisis into a full-blown sectarian conflict, pitting the Iran-backed Houthi Shiites against Sunni tribesmen and secessionists in the south.
It could also play into the hands of Yemen's al-Qaida branch, the world's most dangerous offshoot of the terror group, and jeopardize the U.S. counter-terrorism operations in the country.
In a televised announcement from the Republican Palace in the Yemeni capital of Sanaa, the Houthi rebels said they are forming a five-member presidential council that will replace President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi for an interim two-year period.
The Houthis also said that 'Revolutionary Committee' would be in charge of forming a new parliament with 551 members. The committee is the security and intelligence arm of the rebel group, led by Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, relative to the Houthis' leader, Abdel-Malek al-Houthi."
---Associated Press, February 6, 2015
Monthly Jobs Report: The U.S. Economy Added 257,000 Jobs in January 2015; Unemployment Rate Rose to 5.7%
February 6, 2015 (Friday)
Above: CNN chart showing U.S. monthly jobs creation from January 2014 to January 2015; President Barack Obama
"Islamic State said on Friday that an American woman hostage it was holding in Syria was killed when Jordanian fighter jets bombed a building where she was being held, but Jordan expressed doubt about the Islamist militant group's account of her death.
In Washington, U.S. officials said they could not confirm that the woman, 26-year-old humanitarian worker Kayla Mueller of Prescott, Arizona, had been killed.
Mueller was the last-known American hostage held by Islamic State, which controls wide areas of Syria and Iraq.
The group has beheaded three other Americans, two Britons and two Japanese hostages - most of them aid workers or journalists - in recent months. Mueller was taken hostage while leaving a hospital in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo in August 2013.
The group's latest claim, detailed by the SITE monitoring group, came just days after it released a video on Tuesday showing a captured Jordanian pilot, Mouath al-Kasaesbeh, being burned alive in a cage."
"Islamic State extremists claimed that an American woman held hostage by the group was killed Friday in a Jordanian airstrike in northern Syria, but the government of Jordan dismissed the statement as 'criminal propaganda' and the U.S. said it had not seen any evidence to corroborate the report.
The woman was identified as Kayla Jean Mueller, an American who went to Syria to do aid work, but there was no independent verification of the militants' claim. The statement appeared on a militant website commonly used by the group and was also distributed by Islamic State-affiliated Twitter users.
The 26-year-old Mueller, of Prescott, Arizona, is the only known remaining U.S. hostage held by the Islamic State group.
If the death is confirmed, she would be the fourth American to die while being held by Islamic State militants. Three other Americans — journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff, and aid worker Peter Kassig — were beheaded by the group."
"A pair of bombings in the Iraqi capital Saturday killed nearly two dozen people hours before the city's longtime curfew was set to come to an end.
The deadliest attack happened in the New Baghdad section of the city. Police officials said a suicide bomber targeted a street filled with hardware stores, killing 13 people and wounding at least 30.
The second attack took place shortly afterward in central Baghdad's popular Shorja market. Police said two improvised explosive devices detonated 25 meters apart from one another, killing at least nine people and wounding 25."
---Associated Press, February 7, 2015
Western Powers Seek to Broker Peace Between Ukraine and Russia
February 8, 2015 (Sunday)
Above: Reuters photo of Ukrainian tank in eastern Ukraine, February 8, 2015; Reuters photo of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry arriving in Munich, Germany, February 8, 2015
"The leaders of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France agreed to meet in Belarus on Wednesday to try to broker a peace deal for Ukraine amid escalating violence there and signs of cracks in the transatlantic consensus on confronting Vladimir Putin.
The four leaders held a call on Sunday, two days after Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande traveled to Moscow for talks with Putin that produced no breakthrough in the nearly year-long conflict that has claimed over 5,000 lives.
After the call, Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko said progress had been made and that he was hopeful the meeting in Minsk would lead to a 'swift and unconditional ceasefire' in eastern Ukraine, where pro-Russian separatists have stepped up a military offensive in recent weeks, seizing new territory.
A Ukraine military spokesman said on Sunday that intense fighting was continuing around the rail junction town of Debaltseve, with rebel fighters making repeated attempts to storm lines defended by government troops."
"Secretary of State John Kerry denied on Sunday that a split has emerged between Washington and Europe over how to handle Russia, after leading U.S. senators sharply criticized Germany and other countries who oppose sending arms to the Ukraine military."
---Reuters, February 8, 2015
Prime Minister of Greece Alexis Tsipras Announces Plan to End Greece's Austerity Measures
February 8, 2015 (Sunday)
Above: Reuters photo of Prime Minister of Greece Alexis Tsipras making a major speech to the Parliament of Greece, February 8, 2015
"Leftist Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras laid out plans on Sunday to dismantle Greece's 'cruel' austerity program, ruling out any extension of its international bailout and setting himself on a collision course with his European partners.
In his first major speech to parliament since storming to power last month, Tsipras rattled off a list of moves to reverse reforms imposed by European and International Monetary Fund lenders: from reinstating pension bonuses and cancelling a property tax to ending mass layoffs and raising the mininum wage back to pre-crisis levels.
Showing little intent to heed warnings from EU partners to stick to commitments in the 240 billion euro bailout, Tsipras said he intended to fully respect campaign pledges to heal the 'wounds' of the austerity that was a condition of the money.
Greece would achieve balanced budgets but would no longer produce unrealistic primary budget surpluses, he said, a reference to requirements to be in the black excluding debt repayments.
'The bailout failed,' the 40-year-old leader told parliament to applause. 'We want to make clear in every direction what we are not negotiating. We are not negotiating our national sovereignty.'
In a symbolic move that appeared to take direct aim at Greece's biggest creditor, Tsipras finished off his speech with a pledge to seek World War II reparations from Germany."
---Reuters, February 8, 2015
The Stand in the Courthouse Doors: Alabama Chief Justice Issues 11th Hour Order Against Same-Sex Marriage
February 8, 2015 (Sunday)
Above: Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore; Governor of Alabama Robert Bentley; Federal District Judge Callie Granade
"Alabama appeared set within hours to become the 37th state where gays can legally wed, prompting one couple to pitch a tent outside a courthouse even as the state's chief justice made an 11th hour bid to keep the weddings on hold Monday.
Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore sent a letter Sunday evening to probate judges ordering them to refuse to issue same-sex marriage licenses when the courts opened Monday morning. Moore wrote that the judges weren't bound by a federal judge's ruling Jan. 23 that the marriage ban was unconstitutional.
'Effective immediately, no probate judge of the state of Alabama nor any agent or employee of any Alabama probate judge shall issue or recognize a marriage license that is inconsistent with (the Alabama Constitution),' Moore wrote.
Susan Watson, executive director The American Civil Liberties Union of Alabama, called the move by the conservative chief justice 'grandstanding' and predicted licenses would be issued shortly.
'We will see marriage equality in Alabama tomorrow. I don't think the probate judges in Alabama are going to defy a federal court judge's order,' Watson said late Sunday.
U.S. District Judge Callie Granade had ruled that the state marriage ban was unconstitutional and — in a later clarifying order — said that probate judges have a legal duty under the U.S. Constitution to issue the licenses."
"Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore late Sunday ordered all probate judges and employees in Alabama to follow existing state law and not issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples or recognize same-sex marriages.
Couples across the state are preparing to wed Monday morning, when a stay on same-sex marriages is set to be lifted.
On Jan. 23, U.S. District Judge Callie V.S. 'Ginny' Granade ruled the state's constitutional ban on same-sex marriage and recognition of same-sex marriages entered in other states was unconstitutional. She issued a stay, putting her ruling on hold until Feb. 9.
Since then, Moore has asserted several times probate judges who issued marriage licenses to same-sex couples would be doing so in defiance of state law.
In his order issued Sunday night, Moore wrote that if any probate judge defies the order, Governor Robert Bentley would have the responsibility of ensuring that state law is 'faithfully executed.'"
The Stand in the Courthouse Doors: Same-Sex Marriages Begin in Some Alabama Counties
February 9, 2015 (Monday)
Above: AL.com photos of anti-gay marriage protesters holding a rally near the Baldwin County Courthouse in Bay Minette, Alabama, February 9, 2015
Above: AL.com photo of Randall Thomley, pastor of Fratwell Baptist Church in Perdido, Alabama, leading an anti-gay marriage rally near the Baldwin County Courthouse in Bay Minette, Alabama, February 9, 2015; AL.com photo of a anti-gay marriage demonstrator in Bay Minette, Alabama holding a sign expressing support for Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore, February 9, 2015
Above: AL.com photo of an anti-gay marriage protester carrying a sign quoting the Leviticus 20:13 Bible verse; Reuters photo of a same-sex couple being married near the Jefferson County Courthouse in Birmingham, Alabama, February 9, 2015
"Same-sex couples began marrying in Alabama on Monday, defying an attempt by the chief justice of the state's Supreme Court to block probate judges from issuing marriages licenses to gays and lesbians.
A ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday helped clear the way for Alabama to become the 37th state to allow same-sex couples to marry. Justices refused a request by Alabama's attorney general to keep such marriages on hold until the court rules whether laws banning them are constitutional.
'We wanted to be part of history,' said Dee Bush, 40, who received one of the first marriage licenses issued to same-sex couples in Birmingham, Alabama. She and her partner of seven years, Laura Bush, quickly wed in a park outside the courthouse.
Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore had sought to throw up a last-minute roadblock for marriages between gay and lesbian couples.
Late Sunday, the socially conservative justice issued an order directing probate judges in his state not to hand out marriage licenses to people of the same sex. He said judges were not bound by a federal ruling that last month struck down Alabama's ban on same-sex marriages.
U.S. District Court Judge Callie Granade, an appointee of President George W. Bush, ruled in January that Alabama's prohibition on same-sex marriage was unconstitutional but put her decision on hold until Monday."
"Alabama began issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples Monday despite an 11th-hour attempt from the state's chief justice — an outspoken opponent — to block the weddings.
The U.S. Supreme Court said Monday morning that it wouldn't stop the marriages from beginning in the state, and shortly after, probate judges began granting the licenses to couples, some of whom had been lined up for hours.
'It's about time,' said Shante Wolfe, 21. She smiled as she left the courthouse in Montgomery with wife Tori Sisson. They had camped out in a blue and white tent to be the first in the county given a license.
The probate judges issued the licenses despite Chief Justice Roy Moore's Sunday night order that they refuse. It was a dramatic return to defiance for the chief justice. He was removed from the post in 2003 for refusing to obey a federal court order to remove a washing machine-sized Ten Commandments from the state judicial building. Critics lashed out that Moore had no authority to tell county probate judges to enforce a law that a federal judge already ruled unconstitutional. He's been one of the state's most outspoken critics of gay marriage; in 2002 he called homosexuality an 'evil' in a custody ruling.
Susan Watson, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Alabama, said she has heard of four counties where judges have refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples."
"Amid conflicting signals from federal courts and the chief justice of Alabama’s Supreme Court, some Alabama counties began granting marriage licenses to same-sex couples on Monday in a legal showdown with echoes of the battles over desegregation in the 1960s.
In major county seats like Birmingham, Montgomery and Huntsville, same-sex couples lined up outside courthouses as they opened and emerged smiling after being wed."
"Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore’s defiance of a federal court order on gay marriage is just the latest in a long line of bitter states’ rights fights on issues from school integration to the Confederate battle flag — and the latest potentially embarrassing political sideshow for the 2016 field of GOP presidential hopefuls.
In the end, some veteran Republican strategists suggest, Moore’s order barring county probate judges from issuing gay marriage licenses may serve mainly to harden the entrenched positions of supporters and opponents of a legal issue on which public opinion has been shifting with lightning speed, and which the Supreme Court seems likely to resolve by this summer."
"Kayla Jean Mueller, a 26-year-old American woman held by Islamic State militants, has been confirmed dead, her parents and the Obama administration said Tuesday.
Mueller's family received a private message from her captors over the weekend and the information contained in that communication was authenticated by the U.S. The White House said the U.S. intelligence community has not been able to determine how or when she died."
---Associated Press, February 10, 2015
The Dow Gained 139 Points
February 10, 2015 (Tuesday)
Above: Reuters chart showing a Dow Jones Industrial Average gain of 139 points with a close of 17,868 on February 10, 2015
Anti-Religion Zealot Murders Three Muslims in Chapel Hill, North Carolina
February 10, 2015 (Tuesday)
Above: Charlotte Observer photo of Deah Barakat, Yusor Abu Salha, and Razan Abu Salha, the three victims in the triple murder on February 10, 2015;Reuters copy of Durham County, North Carolina booking photo of Craig Stephen Hicks, age 46, resident of Chapel Hill, North Carolina
"A man has been arrested and charged with fatally shooting three people near the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill campus on Tuesday, the school said.
The victims were named as Deah Shaddy Barakat, 23, his wife Yusor Mohammad, 21 and her sister, Razan Mohammad Abu-Salha, 19.
Craig Stephen Hicks, 46, of Chapel Hill was arrested and charged with three counts of first-degree murder, according to a statement on the school's alert website.
The police have offered no motive for the killings. The hashtag #MuslimLivesMatter was trending nationally on Twitter early on Wednesday, with many postings discussing the shooting.
The school statement said police responded to a report of gunshots at 5:11 p.m. local time and found the three victims, who were all pronounced dead at the scene."
"Brian Williams, the anchor of NBC's top-rated 'Nightly News' program, has been suspended without pay for six months after admitting last week that a story he told about coming under fire while on a helicopter during the Iraq war was not true, the network said on Tuesday."
---Reuters, February 10, 2015
Continued Fighting in Ukraine Between Government Forces and Pro-Russian Separatists
February 11, 2015 (Wednesday)
Above: AP photo of President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko at the site of an unexploded rocket in Kramatorsk, Ukraine, February 11, 2015; AP photo of President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko visiting a shelling victim at a Kramatorskhospital, February 11, 2015
Above: AP photo of an elderly woman near a burned-out vehicle at a bus station in Donetsk, Ukraine, February 11, 2015; AP photo of inspectors looking over a burned-out vehicle at a bus station in Donetsk, Ukraine, February 11, 2015
"Fighting raged in eastern Ukraine Wednesday, killing five people at a bus station in the rebel stronghold of Donetsk, as Western leaders confirmed that they would take part in peace talks later in the day.
Steffen Seibert, a spokesman for German Chancellor Angela Merkel, said she and French President Francois Hollande would travel to the Belarusian capital, Minsk, to attend the four-way summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko.
European leaders have warned that there is no guarantee a deal will be reached with Moscow, which the West says is fueling a separatist rising in eastern Ukraine with troops and arms. Germany and France have rushed to mediate after a recent uptick in violence in the region, where fighting has killed at least 5,300 people since April.
In Donetsk, rebel officials said that five people were killed and nine wounded in a shelling attack early Wednesday on a bus station, where an Associated Press reporter saw one body. Donetsk city officials said in a statement that three people had been killed in shelling overnight.
Officials in Kiev said Wednesday that 19 troops had been killed and 78 wounded in a day of fighting in Debaltseve, a hotly contested transport hub in the region."
---Associated Press, February 11, 2015
Houthi Shiites Seize Abandoned American Vehicles in Yemen
February 11, 2015 (Wednesday)
Above: Reuters photo of Yemini forces near the U.S. Embassy in Sanaa, Yemen, February 11, 2015
"The United States, Britain and France moved to close their embassies in Yemen on Wednesday, increasing the isolation of Shiite rebels who have seized power. In a show of bravado against the Americans, the rebels seized the cars of U.S. diplomats left at the airport on the way out.
At the same time, the rebels — known as the Houthis — attacked demonstrators holding protests against their power grab in various parts of the capital, Sanaa, witnesses said. The fighters beat protesters and stabbed them with knives, arrested more than a dozen.
The increasing turmoil comes almost four years to the day since the start of Yemen's 2011 Arab Spring uprising that ousted the longtime autocratic ruler but then opened a political transition that crumbled between the country's grinding forces of tribal politics, sectarian divisions, al-Qaida militancy and succession movements.
The crisis reached a new peak when the Houthis — widely believed to have Iranian support — overran the capital Sanaa late last year. They have since taken over larger parts of the country. In January, the rebels put U.S.-backed President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi and all his Cabinet ministers under house arrest, leading to their resignations. Subsequently, the Houthis, who are followers of the Shiite Zaydi sect in the Sunni-majority Yemen, dissolved parliament and declared they were taking over the government."
"Islamic State insurgents took control on Thursday of large parts of the western Iraqi town of al-Baghdadi, threatening an air base where U.S. Marines are training Iraqi troops, officials said.
Al-Baghdadi, about 85 km (50 miles) northwest of Ramadi in Anbar province, has been besieged for months by the radical Sunni Islamist militants who captured vast swathes of northern and western Iraq last year.
Militants attacked al-Baghdadi from two directions earlier in the day and then advanced on the town, intelligence sources and officials in the Jazeera and Badiya operations commands said."
---Reuters, February 12, 2015
Alabama Culture War: Federal Judge Orders Mobile County Probate Judge to Grant Marriage Licenses to Same-Sex Couples
February 12, 2015 (Thursday)
Above: Wikipedia map of Alabama with Mobile County highlighted in red; U.S. District Judge Callie V.S. "Ginny" Granade; Mobile County, Alabama Probate Judge Don Davis
Above: Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore; Wikipedia map of Alabama with Baldwin County highlighted in red; AL.com photo of Baldwin County, Alabama Probate Judge Tim Russell
"A federal judge in Mobile on Thursday ordered Mobile County Probate Judge Don Davis to start granting marriage licenses to gay couples, and he immediately took steps to do just that.
The ruling came shortly after U.S. District Judge Callie V.S. "Ginny" Granade heard from lawyers of gay couples who had not been able to get marriage licenses in Mobile this week."
"A federal judge on Thursday ordered an Alabama official to comply with her earlier ruling striking down the state's ban on same-sex matrimony and begin issuing marriage licenses to gay couples.
U.S. District Judge Callie Granade's order sought to clarify that Mobile County Probate Court Judge Don Davis should follow her directive in spite of a contravening order from Alabama Supreme Court Justice Roy Moore that led many state judges to refrain from issuing marriage licenses to gay couples.
The ruling marked the latest twist in the controversy over gay marriage in Alabama, where probate judges have faced conflicting orders from federal and state courts. The resulting disarray has allowed some same-sex couples to marry in places such as Birmingham, while those applying for marriage licenses in dozens of counties were turned away.
Granade's order applied specifically to Mobile County, where, within an hour of the ruling, same-sex couples who had been waiting in line at a county building began to receive licenses. It was not immediately clear whether judges in the other 43 of Alabama's 67 counties that have refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples would reverse course."
Above: Wikipedia map of Europe and surrounding areas with Ukraine highlighted in green (disputed Crimea region inlighter green); AP photo of burned out Ukrainian military vehicles near Artemivsk, Ukraine, February 13, 2015
Above: AP photos of Ukrainian military activity near Artemivsk, Ukraine, February 13, 2015
"Ukraine and Russian-backed rebels fought fiercely across the east of the country on Friday despite a new peace deal brokered by Germany and France.
A ceasefire is due to come into effect from Sunday under the agreement, which also envisages a withdrawal of the heavy weapons responsible for many of the 5,000 casualties in the conflict that broke out almost a year ago.
Kiev said pro-Russian rebels had built up their forces across separatist-held zones since the deal and both sides accused each other of killing civilians.
Two people were killed and six wounded when a shell hit a cafe in the Kiev-controlled town of Shchastya near rebel-held Luhansk in eastern Ukraine, a local official said, adding that other shells had struck elsewhere in the town."
"Fierce fighting surged in east Ukraine as Russian-backed separatists mounted a major and sustained new push Friday to capture a strategic railway hub ahead of a weekend cease-fire deadline.
Clashes appeared only to have increased in the day since a peace agreement was sealed in the Belarusian capital of Minsk by the leaders of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France. German Chancellor Angela Merkel cautiously described the agreement negotiated Thursday as 'a glimmer of hope.'
The government-held railway town of Debaltseve was on the receiving end of dozens of artillery and rocket salvos in the 24-hour period following the Minsk talks, Ukrainian military officials said.
Associated Press reporters Friday observed intense shelling along the highway north of the town, which remains the only land link between Debaltseve and the remainder of government-controlled territory.
The deadline for the warring sides to halt hostilities is set to take effect on Sunday, at one minute after midnight. Interfax-Ukraine news agency quoted Petro Mekhed, Ukraine's deputy defense minister, as saying separatist forces had been given the task of hoisting their flags over Debaltseve, as well as the port city of Mariuopol, by Sunday."
---Associated Press, February 13, 2015
Culture War in the Heart of Dixie: Historic Wedding in Baldwin County, Alabama
February 13, 2015 (Friday)
Above: Wikipedia map of Alabama with Baldwin County highlighted in red; AL.com photo of Kelly Pfannenstiel (left) and Latoria Smith (right) at their wedding site near Stockton, a community in Baldwin County northwest of Bay Minette, Alabama
Above: Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore; AL.com Baldwin County, Alabama Probate Judge Tim Russell
"Kelly Pfannenstiel and Latoria Smith returned to Bay Minette Friday to make a little bit of Baldwin County history as the first same-sex couple to get not only a marriage license, but to also to follow through with the actual marriage.
It was a moment involving two women who Smith's cousin, Josh Smith of Foley, called 'trailblazers' and 'pioneers.'
The morning started when the couple walked up to a clerk at the Baldwin County Probate Office, paid $40 to get a marriage license and spoke briefly to the media before heading back to their home in Gulf Shores.
But as they left, Pfannenstiel and Smith encountered a wedding officiant, who was waiting outside.
Initially, the couple said they wanted to get hitched on a beach. But that changed with an abrupt offer to get married immediately.
The couple, Smith, and family friend Donnie Coates, left and headed north toward a remote park and church in Stockton. They were married within a couple of minutes."
"Alabama's stand against gay marriage crumbled Friday as judges in most counties sided with federal courts rather than their own chief justice, a Republican who once called homosexuality an inherent evil.
Many counties in the Bible Belt state began issuing the licenses to same-sex couples after the latest strongly worded order from U.S. District Judge Callie Granade. She said Thursday that a judge could no longer deny marriage licenses to gays and lesbians, reiterating her ruling striking down the state's ban on same-sex marriage."
---Associated Press, February 13, 2015
Dow Closed Above 18,000
February 13, 2015 (Friday)
Above: Reuters chart showing the Dow Jones Industrial Average gaining 46 points, closing at 18,019 on February 13, 2015
Culture War in the Hear of Dixie: Alabama Supreme Court to Consider Actions to Halt Same-Sex Marriage
February 13, 2015 (Friday)
Above: Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore; Map of Alabama with county boundaries identified
"The Alabama Supreme Court late Friday agreed to consider a petition by two groups seeking a halt to the issuance of same-sex marriage licenses by state probate judges.
Meanwhile another group, which supports same-sex unions, also asked justices Friday to toss out the petition. And one Alabama Supreme Court justice wrote he believes an order halting the issuance of licenses could inject more confusion and, possibly, subject more probate judge to federal lawsuits.
In a 6-2 decision issued late Friday, the Alabama Supreme Court set up a schedule next week for the different sides to file their answers and briefs on the request by the Alabama Policy Institute and Alabama Citizens Action Program. The court, however, did not say whether it would hold a hearing for oral arguments before responding to the petition.
The order stated the briefs by probate judges should address issues raised by the petition, including whether the state Supreme Court even has jurisdiction to hear the petition.
Answers and briefs by probate judges are to be filed by 5 p.m. Feb. 18 and then ALCAP and API will have a chance to respond by 5 p.m. Feb. 20."
"Heavy artillery fire roared Saturday in eastern Ukraine as fighting between Ukrainian forces and Russia-backed separatists continued hours before a cease-fire was to take effect in the conflict that has killed more than 5,300 people.
Associated Press reporters saw the artillery barrage near the town of Svitlodarsk as well as considerable movement of Ukrainian forces' armored vehicles and rocket launchers along the road.
Svitlodarsk is about 20 kilometers (12 miles) north of Debaltseve, a strategically important railroad junction city where Ukrainian forces have been under siege by rebels. Eduard Basurin, a rebel spokesman, was quoted by the RIA Novosti news agency as saying that the fighters would not allow the Ukrainian forces to escape the city but would be offered the opportunity to surrender.
Under an agreement reached Thursday, the warring sides are to cease firing at midnight (2200 GMT). However, a previous cease-fire called in September failed to take hold and after fighting escalated sharply in January, expectations for the new agreement are clouded."
"Fierce fighting is continuing in eastern Ukraine, hours before a ceasefire is due to come into force at midnight (22:00 GMT).
A police chief said the strategic town of Debaltseve was suffering a ferocious bombardment by pro-Russian rebels.
Renewed fighting is also reported near the southern port city of Mariupol.
Meanwhile, the US ambassador to Ukraine tweeted recent satellite images that he said showed Russian artillery near Debaltseve.
Geoffrey Pyatt also said on Twitter that Russian units along the border were preparing a large shipment of supplies to separatist fighters.
He said that the rebels were now better armed than some Nato countries."
---BBC, February 14, 2015
Deadly Shooting in Copenhagen, Denmark at Site of Freedom of Speech Event
February 14, 2015 (Saturday)
Above: Reuters photo of bullet holes in glass window at the site of a deadly shooting in Copenhagen, Denmark, February 14, 2015; Reuters 2012 photo of Lars Vilks, the organizer of the free speech event that was the site of the deadly shooting in Copenhagen on February 14, 2015
"A civilian was killed and three police wounded on Saturday when a masked gunman sprayed bullets into a Copenhagen meeting attended by a Swedish artist threatened with death for his cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad.
Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt said Denmark was on high alert after a 'terrorist attack' police said was aimed at artist Lars Vilks, who stirred controversy in 2007 with published drawings depicting the Prophet Mohammad as a dog.
The attacker escaped in a car that was found later in the outskirts of Copenhagen. Danish police were put on high alert.
The cafe complex was hosting a cultural event called 'Art, Blasphemy and Freedom of Expression'. French ambassador to Denmark Francois Zimeray, who was attending the event, likened the shooting to the attack on the Charlie Hebdo newspaper in Paris by Islamist militants that killed 12 people last month."
"A gunman opened fire Saturday on a Copenhagen cultural center, killing one man in what authorities called a terror attack against a free speech event featuring an artist who had caricatured the Prophet Muhammad.
The shooting, which also wounded three police officers, came a month after extremists killed 12 people at a satirical newspaper in Paris that had sparked Muslim outrage with its depictions of Muhammad.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the shooting, which took place shortly before 4 p.m. Danish police said the gunman used an automatic weapon to shoot through the windows of the Krudttoenden cultural center, which TV footage showed were riddled with bullet holes. The gunman then fled in a carjacked Volkswagen Polo that was found later a few kilometers (miles) away, police said."
"Shelling suddenly stopped at midnight in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk after President Petro Poroshenko gave the order to government forces to halt firing in line with a ceasefire agreement reached last Thursday.
Poroshenko, wearing the uniform of the armed forces supreme commander, said in a televised address in the capital Kiev that there was still 'alarm' over the situation around Debaltseve, a key transport hub, where government forces are hard pressed by encircling Russian-backed separatists.
And he warned that Ukraine, if it was slapped once, would not offer the other cheek.
But, seated alongside armed forces chief of staff Viktor Muzhenko, he added: 'I very much hope that the last chance to begin the long and difficult peaceful process for a political settlement will not be wasted.'
'As a first step I now give the order to the armed forces of Ukraine ... to cease fire at 00:00 hours on February 15,' he said.
Military spokesman Vladyslav Selezynov said the Ukrainian armed forces immediately fulfilled the order and the big guns fell silent in Donetsk and some other parts of the separatist-leaning east."
"The cease-fire period for fighting in Ukraine began one minute after midnight Sunday, bringing slim hopes of a reprieve from a grueling conflict that has killed at least 5,300 people and displaced more than 1 million.
Under an agreement struck last week, Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed separatist rebels are to begin pulling back their heavy weaponry this week to form a wide buffer zone.
But anxiety remains high that unrest could be sparked anew by rival claims to Debaltseve, a strategic railway hub now controlled by the government.
The hours before the cease-fire were marked by ferocious battles as Ukrainian forces undertook desperate efforts to hold onto Debaltseve, as well as the highway leading northward from the town to the Ukrainian rearguard.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko issued the order in a live broadcast for all the country's armed forces to hold their fire from one minute after midnight Kiev time (2201 GMT, 5:01 p.m. EST).
Residents of the city of Donetsk, the separatist stronghold which has been under fire from Ukrainian forces, reported that shells stopped falling immediately after the declaration of the cease-fire.
In an inauspicious omen for the prospects of any cessation of hostilities, rebels have said they will not consider any battles for Debaltseve to be a violation of the cease-fire. Separatists argue that the town has been completely surrounded by their forces and that Ukrainian troops still dug in there should surrender."
---Associated Press, February 14, 2015 (U.S. Time Zones)
Female Suicide Bomber Kills Over a Dozen in Northeastern Nigeria
"A teenage female suicide bomber blew herself up at crowded bus station in northeast Nigeria on Sunday, killing at least 16 and wounding 30 others.
Most of the victims were children who had either been selling peanuts or begging for money at the time of the explosion, said witnesses.
The bomber managed to get through the security check at the entrance to the bus station in Damaturu, the capital of Yobe state, and detonated herself at 1 p.m. local time."
---Associated Press, February 15, 2015
ISIS Releases Video Purporting to Show the Execution of Twenty-one Coptic Christians
February 15, 2015 (Sunday)
Above: AP still image from ISIS video (released February 15, 2015) purporting to show Egyptian Coptic Christians ( wearing orange jumpsuits) being led to their executions by beheading
"Islamic State released a video on Sunday purporting to show the beheading of a group of Egyptian Christians kidnapped in Libya, violence likely to deepen Cairo's concerns over security threats from militants thriving in the neighboring country's chaos.
Egypt's state news agency MENA quoted the spokesman for the Coptic Church as confirming that 21 Egyptian Christians believed to be held by Islamic State were dead.
In the video, militants in black marched the captives, dressed in orange jump suits, to a beach the group said was near Tripoli. They were forced down onto their knees, then beheaded.
The video appeared on the Twitter feed of a website that supports Islamic State, which has seized parts of Iraq and Syria and has also beheaded Western hostages.
A caption on the five-minute video read: 'The people of the cross, followers of the hostile Egyptian church.'"
"A video purporting to show the mass beheading of Coptic Christian hostages has been released by militants in Libya claiming loyalty to the Islamic State group.
The killings raise the possibility that the Islamic militant group — which controls about a third of Syria and Iraq in a self-declared caliphate — has established a direct affiliate less than 500 miles from the southern tip of Italy. One of the militants in the video, speaking English, makes direct reference to that possibility, saying the group now plans to 'conquer Rome.'
The Associated Press could not immediately independently verify the video. But the Egyptian government and the Coptic Church, which is based in Egypt, both declared it authentic.
The Egyptian government declared a seven-day mourning period and President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi addressed the nation late Sunday night, pledging resilience in the fight against terrorism."
"Pro-Russian rebels pounded encircled Ukrainian government forces on Monday and Kiev said it would not pull back heavy guns while a truce was being violated, leaving a European-brokered peace deal on the verge of collapse a day after it took effect.
The European Union announced a new list of Ukrainian separatists and Russians targeted with sanctions, to which Moscow promised an 'adequate' response.
Fighting had subsided in many parts of eastern Ukraine after a ceasefire came into force from Sunday, under a deal reached last week in marathon talks involving the leaders of France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine.
But the truce appears to have been stillborn in the part of the front where the most intensive fighting has taken place in recent weeks.
Rebels announced hours after it came into effect that they had no intention of observing the ceasefire at the town of Debaltseve, where they have been advancing since January and now have a Ukrainian unit all-but encircled."
---Reuters, February 16, 2015
Ukrainian Cease-Fire Failing: Fighting Continues in the Debaltseve Area of Ukraine
February 17, 2015 (Tuesday)
Above: Wikipedia map of Europe with Ukraine highlighted in dark green
"Pro-Russian rebels bombarded government troops encircled in east Ukraine on Tuesday and a plan for both sides to pull back their heavy guns stalled, pushing a fragile peace deal closer to collapse.
A Reuters witness near the front line said artillery rounds rocked the town of Debaltseve every five seconds and black smoke rose skywards, despite a truce that has eased fighting in many areas since the European-brokered deal took effect on Sunday.
The rebels said they had captured parts of Debaltseve, which sits on a strategic railway junction, and that some Ukrainian soldiers had surrendered, but Kiev denied this."
---Reuters, February 17, 2015
Dow Closes Above 18,000, Again
February 17, 2015 (Tuesday)
Above: Reuters chart showing the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing at 18.047 on February 17, 2015
Debaltseve Falls to Pro-Russian Separatist Rebels
February 18, 2015 (Wednesday)
Above: AP photo of President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko speaking to the press at an airport near Kiev, Ukraine, February 18, 2015; AP photo of a retreating Ukrainian military vehicle in eastern Ukraine, February 18, 2015
Above: AP photos of retreating Ukrainian military vehicles in eastern Ukraine, February 18, 2015
"After weeks of relentless fighting, the embattled Ukrainian rail hub of Debaltseve fell Wednesday to Russia-backed separatists, who hoisted a flag in triumph over the town. The Ukrainian president confirmed that he had ordered troops to pull out and the rebels reported taking hundreds of soldiers captive.
Associated Press reporters saw several dozen Ukrainian troops retreating with their weapons Wednesday morning from the town in eastern Ukraine, covered in dirt and looking exhausted. Some were driving to the nearby town of Artemivsk in trucks while several others, unshaven and visibly upset, were on foot.
One soldier spoke of heavy government losses, while another said they had not been able to get food or water because of the intense rebel shelling. A third spoke of hunkering down in bunkers for hours, unable to even go to the toilet because of the shelling. They smoked cigarettes in the frigid winter air and gratefully accepted plastic cups of tea given to them by locals."
"Ukraine pulled thousands of troops out of an encircled town on Wednesday after a massive assault by pro-Russian rebels, who ignored a new ceasefire to seize the strategic railway junction.
The fall of the besieged town of Debaltseve was one of the worst defeats of the war for Ukraine's troops, who proved unable to stop an advance by Moscow-backed rebels fighting for territory the Kremlin calls 'New Russia'.
Twenty-two Ukrainian soldiers had been killed in the town in the past few days, the Ukrainian military high command said, with more than 150 wounded."
---Reuters, February 18, 2015
Culture War: Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani Claims President Obama Does Not Love America
February 18, 2015 (Wednesday)
Above: 2014 AP photo of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani
"Rudy Giuliani went straight for the jugular Wednesday night during a private group dinner here featuring Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker by openly questioning whether President Barack Obama 'loves America.'
The former New York mayor, speaking in front of the 2016 Republican presidential contender and about 60 right-leaning business executives and conservative media types, directly challenged Obama’s patriotism, discussing what he called weak foreign policy decisions and questionable public remarks when confronting terrorists.
'I do not believe, and I know this is a horrible thing to say, but I do not believe that the president loves America,' Giuliani said during the dinner at the 21 Club, a former Prohibition-era speakeasy in midtown Manhattan. 'He doesn’t love you. And he doesn’t love me. He wasn’t brought up the way you were brought up and I was brought up through love of this country.'
With Walker sitting just a few seats away, Giuliani continued by saying that 'with all our flaws we’re the most exceptional country in the world. I’m looking for a presidential candidate who can express that, do that and carry it out.'"
"Democrats on Thursday assailed former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani for questioning President Barack Obama's love of country, and urged the potential field of Republican presidential candidates to rebuke him for his comments.
Giuliani said at a New York City event on Wednesday night, 'I know this is a horrible thing to say, but I do not believe that the president loves America.'
'He doesn't love you. And he doesn't love me. He wasn't brought up the way you were brought up and I was brought up through love of this country,' said Giuliani, who sought the 2008 GOP presidential nomination. His comments were reported by Politico and the New York Daily News.
Democratic National Committee chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz said it's time for Republican leaders to 'stop this nonsense.'"
Separatist Pro-Russian Rebels Firmly in Control of Debaltseve, Ukraine
February 19, 2015 (Thursday)
Above: AP photo of a dead Ukrainian soldier in Debaltseve covered by a Flag of Ukraine, Thursday, February 19, 2015;AP photo of Pro-Russian rebel carrying a flag in Debaltseve, Ukraine, February 19, 2015
Above: AP photos of triumphant Pro-Russian rebels in Debaltseve, Ukraine, February 19, 2015
"Rebel fighters, many of them Cossacks, roamed the streets of Debaltseve on Thursday, a day after Ukrainian forces began withdrawing from the besieged town. The mood was celebratory, with fighters laughing, hugging each other and posing for photos.
Associated Press journalists drove Thursday around half of the town that has been a focal point for weeks of fierce fighting in eastern Ukraine, finding all its neighborhoods under the control of rebel fighters.
Nikolai Kozitsyn, a Russian Cossack leader and prominent warlord in separatist eastern Ukraine, drove around in a Humvee-like vehicle that had been captured from Ukrainian troops. Other rebels were seen waving separatist flags.
All around lay the wrecked remains of Ukrainian armored vehicles. A government encampment near a crossroads lay deserted and rebel fighters searched through its bunkers and abandoned tents, looking to salvage equipment and clothing left behind.
Two fighters inspected a tank left behind by Ukrainians that they described as a 'gift' from the government troops. They then grabbed a bloodied blue-and-yellow Ukrainian flag lying next to the tank and ground it into the frozen earth with their boots."
"Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has suffered another crushing defeat. Less than a week after negotiating the renewal of the so-called Minsk ceasefire agreement with Russian President Vladimir Putin, his soldiers have come limping out of Debaltseve, a road and rail hub in eastern Ukraine that pro-Russian rebels were besieging even as the talks dragged through the night.
Not only does the fierce fighting cast doubt on the chance for a lasting truce, but it puts the Ukrainian president in an increasingly difficult position domestically. As Ukrainians mark the first anniversary of the bloody Maidan protest and former President Viktor Yanukovych’s disgraceful flight from power, many are asking themselves what has been achieved. Crimea has been lost, the economy is cratering, and more than 5,000 people have been killed in a war with murky origins and little purpose."
---Lucian Kim, Reuters, February 19, 2015
Former First Lady of Virginia Sentenced to a Year in Prison
February 20, 2015 (Friday)
Above: AP photo of Maureen McDonnell, the wife of the former Virginia governor, on the day of her sentencing in Richmond, Virginia, Friday, February 20, 2015
"Former Virginia first lady Maureen McDonnell was sentenced Friday to one year and 1 day in prison for her role in a bribery scheme that destroyed her husband's political career.
U.S. District Judge James Spencer sentenced McDonnell on eight public corruption counts. The couple had been found guilty of doing favors for a nutritional supplements executive in exchange for $165,000 in gifts and loans. Prosecutors had asked for an 18-month sentence for the former first lady. Defense attorneys requested probation and 4,000 hours of community service.
Fighting back tears, McDonnell apologized to her family and Virginians and said she takes full responsibility."
"Euro zone finance ministers agreed in principle on Friday to extend heavily indebted Greece's financial rescue by four months, averting a potential cash crunch in March that could have forced the country out of the currency area.
The deal, to be ratified once Greece's creditors are satisfied with a list of reforms it will submit next week, ended weeks of uncertainty since the election of a radical leftist-led government in Athens pledged to reverse austerity measures."
"Greece and its creditors in the 19-nation eurozone reached an agreement Friday on extending the country's rescue loans, a move that should ease concerns it was heading for the euro exit.
Athens will get an extension of four months, not six, as it had requested, said Jeroen Dijsselbloem, the eurozone's top official. In return, Greece has committed to make a series of unspecified reforms to be enacted over the coming months.
Friday's agreement was clinched just a week before Greece's 240 billion euro bailout program expires, leaving barely enough time for some member country parliaments to endorse the deal."
---Associated Press, February 20, 2015
The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 Close at All-Time Highs
February 20, 2015 (Friday)
Above: Reuters chart showing the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing at a record high of 18,140 on February 20, 2015
Above: Reuters chart showing the S&P 500 closing at a record high of 2,110 on February 20, 2015
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras Declares Victory Over "Troika"
February 21, 2015 (Saturday)
Above: Reuters photo of Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras at a cabinet meeting in Athens, February 21, 2015
"Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras declared victory on Saturday after agreeing a conditional financial rescue deal with Europe and despite making big concessions to avert a banking collapse within days.
With his left-wing leadership pilloried by German conservatives, Tsipras insisted that Friday night's last-minute agreement canceled austerity commitments and dispensed with the 'troika' - European and IMF inspectors loathed by many Greeks."
---Reuters, February 21, 2015
Culture War: Opponents of Same-Sex Marriage Hold Rally at the State Capitol Grounds in Montgomery, Alabama
February 21, 2015 (Saturday)
Above: Montgomery Advertiser photo of a boy on the Alabama State Capitol grounds holding a sign expressing support for Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore, February 21, 2015; Montgomery Advertiser photo of opponents of same-sex marriage holding a rally on the steps of the Capitol Building of the State of Alabama in Montgomery, February 21, 2015
Above: TheAL.com photos above show demonstrators, on February 21, 2015 at a rally on the steps of the Alabama Capitol Building in Montgomery, carrying signs expressing opposition to same-sex marriage. Moreover, the signs shown immediately above were labeled with "League of the South" and "Dixienet.org," references to an Alabama-based organization advocating Southern secession from the United States of America.
Above: AL.comphoto of Alabama State Representative Will Ainsworth, a Republican representing Guntersville, speaking to the Sanctity of Marriage rally on the steps of the Alabama State Capitol, February 21, 2015; AL.com photo of demonstrators at the Sanctity of Marriage Rally on the Capitol steps in Montgomery, Alabama, February 21, 2015; AL.com photo of protesters agains same-sex marriage on the Capitol steps in Montgomery, Alabama, February 21, 2015
"Roughly 300 people gathered at the State Capitol this morning to rally against same-sex marriage.
Sanctity of Marriage Alabama, an informal group that says it supports 'marriage as defined by God,' hosted the rally at 10 a.m.
The same group held a rally on Feb. 7.
In a news release about the event, the group took issue with the recent issuing of same-sex marriage licenses across the state that began Feb. 9.
The group also expressed support for Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore in his opposition to gay marriage and for probate judges who have refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples."
"Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, a leading Republican contender for the White House in 2016, said Saturday he doesn't know whether President Barack Obama loves his country.
'You should ask the president what he thinks about America,' Walker told The Associated Press while in Washington for a weekend meeting of the National Governors Association. 'I've never asked him so I don't know.'
Earlier in the week, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani said during a dinner speech, with Walker in attendance, 'I know this is a horrible thing to say, but I do not believe that the president loves America.'
Democrats have assailed Giuliani for questioning Obama's love of country and urged the potential field of Republican presidential candidates to rebuke Giuliani for his comments."
---Associated Press, February 21, 2015
The 87th Academy Awards
February 22, 2015 (Sunday)
Above: Poster for the 87th Academy Awards; Reuters photo of Alejandro Inarritu and others accepting the Best Picture Oscar for Birdman, February 22, 2015
Above: Reuters photo of Julianne Moore, winner of the Oscar for Best Actress, February 22, 2015; AP photo of Eddie Redmayne, winner of the Oscar for Best Actor, February 22, 2015
Above: Movie poster for Birdman; Movie poster for StillAlice; Movie poster for The Theory of Everything
"The dark comedy 'Birdman' held up a mirror to Hollywood and its struggling actors and in return received the film industry's highest recognition on Sunday, the Academy Award for best picture.
Director Alejandro G. Inarritu's story of a washed-up, former superhero actor attempting an improbable comeback on Broadway won four Oscars in its nine nominations, including best director, the second consecutive win in that category for a Mexican filmmaker.
Acclaimed for looking like one continuous shot through a Broadway theater and mixing reality with fantasy, the movie, Inarritu said, came from learning to be fearless in filmmaking."
"Islamic State militants have abducted at least 90 people from Assyrian Christian villages in northeastern Syria, a monitoring group that tracks violence in Syria said on Tuesday.
The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the militants carried out dawn raids on rural villages inhabited by the ancient Christian minority west of Hasaka, a city mainly held by the Kurds."
---Reuters, February 24, 2015
Marijuana Possession and Use Became Legal in Alaska
"Smoking, growing and owning small amounts of marijuana became legal in Alaska on Tuesday as a growing decriminalization movement reached the United States' northwest frontier.
Alaska, which narrowly passed the measure in November, followed Colorado and Washington among states allowing recreational use, reflecting a rapidly shifting legal landscape for the drug.
It remains illegal, however, under federal law.
In the District of Columbia, Mayor Muriel Bowser said on Tuesday the U.S. capital would go ahead with legalized possession of small amounts of marijuana and pot plants despite opposition from Congress. Voters overwhelmingly approved legalizing pot last year, but its sale is still banned.
Oregon voters approved a similar measure in November, but the drug does not become legal until July. In Maryland, the state legislature began hearings on Tuesday on a measure to legalize marijuana.
In Alaska, anyone aged 21 or older can possess up to an ounce (28.3 grams) of marijuana and can grow up to six plants, three of which can be flowering.
Smoking in public and buying and selling the drug remains illegal, but private exchanges are allowed if money is not involved."
---Reuters, February 24, 2015
The Dow Closes at a Record High: 18,209
February 24, 2015 (Tuesday)
Above: Reuters chart showing the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing at 18,209 on February 24, 2015
Chicago 2015 Mayoral Election: Incumbent Mayor Rahm Emanuel to Face a Runoff
February 24, 2015 (Tuesday)
Above: AP election day photos of Chicago mayoral candidates Rahm Emanuel (left), the incumbent mayor, and Jesus "Chuy" Garcia (right), a Cook County Commissioner, February 24, 2015
"After failing to persuade a majority of Chicago voters to back his re-election bid, Mayor Rahm Emanuel could face an even stiffer challenge in April against a runoff opponent aiming to consolidate the support of residents unhappy with how the former White House chief of staff has managed the nation's third-largest city.
In a race Tuesday against four challengers, Emanuel discovered it wasn't enough to spend millions of dollars on TV ads, earn the backing of the city's business leaders, and secure the hometown endorsement of President Barack Obama. In order to keep the job, he'll need to win another race in six weeks against Jesus 'Chuy' Garcia, a Cook County commissioner who claims the backing of teachers, unions and neighborhood residents disillusioned with Emanuel."
"Possession of small amounts of marijuana became legal in the District of Columbia on Thursday amid a face-off between local officials and the U.S. Congress over whether the new standards are lawful.
The U.S. capital joined Washington state, Alaska and Colorado in making marijuana lawful for recreational use, reflecting a rapidly shifting legal landscape for the drug. It remains illegal under federal law.
Initiative 71, a ballot measure legalizing marijuana possession and approved by 65 percent of District of Columbia voters in November, took effect at 12:01 a.m. EST. Sale of marijuana is still prohibited.
Mayor Muriel Bowser and other city officials vowed on Wednesday that legalization would go ahead despite warnings from Republicans on the House of Representatives Oversight Committee that the move was illegal.
In a letter to Bowser, committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz of Utah and Mark Meadows of North Carolina, head of a committee subpanel, said a December spending bill had barred the District of Columbia from spending any funds to make pot legal or lessen penalties. Congress has oversight over the District of Columbia.
Bowser contends that Initiative 71 was officially certified before the spending ban. A congressional review period ran out on Wednesday.
The law allows adults to possess up to 2 ounces (56 grams) of marijuana and to grow six plants, three of them mature. Sales are barred but transfers of up to 1 ounce (26 grams) is legal."
---Reuters, February 26, 2015
FCC Approves "Net Neutrality" Rules
February 26, 2015 (Thursday)
Above: Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission Tom Wheeler
"U.S. regulators on Thursday imposed the toughest rules yet on Internet service providers, aiming to ensure fair treatment of all web traffic through their networks.
The Federal Communications Commission voted along party lines, with Democrats in favor, to approve new "net neutrality" rules that seek to restrict broadband providers' power to control download speeds on the web, for instance by potentially giving preference to companies that can afford to pay more.
The vote starts a countdown to expected lawsuits from cable and telecoms providers which argue that the tougher regulatory regime will stifle investments, hurting consumers. Republicans see Thursday's move as a government power grab."
---Reuters, February 26, 2015
The War on Drugs: Mexico Announces Arrest of Major Drug Lord
February 27, 2015 (Friday)
Above: The Guardianundated photo of Servando "La Tuta" Gomez; Map of Mexico and surrounding region with State of Michoacan highlighted
Above: Reuters photo via an undated video showing Servando "La Tuta" Gomez
"Servando 'La Tuta' Gomez, who once terrorized western Michoacan state and was one of Mexico's most-wanted drug lords , was captured early Friday by federal police, according to a Mexican official.
He was arrested in the capital city of Morelia without a shot fired, said the official spokesman, who talked on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the case.
Gomez, 49, was the leader of the Knights Templar cartel, a quasi-religious criminal group that once ruled all of the state, controlling politics and commerce. He evaded capture for more than a year after the federal government took over the state to try to restore order. The Mexican government had offered a $2 million reward for his capture.
The folksy and charismatic cartel leader of puffy cheeks and large nose, known to wear a baseball cap and a gray-haired goatee, was a fugitive also wanted in the United States for conspiracy to import and distribute cocaine.
The hit comes at a time when the Mexican government needed a win. President Enrique Pena Nieto has faced a political crisis since 43 college students disappeared last fall at the hands of local authorities, and conflict of interest scandals emerged involving his personal home and that of his treasury secretary. The week started off rough, with Oscar-winning Mexican director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu saying in his acceptance speech that he hoped Mexico could get the government it deserves, followed by Pope Francis referring to drug trafficking in Argentina as a 'Mexicanization' of the country, and Donald Trump urging people not to do business in Mexico.
Pena Nieto's government has been aggressive in capturing of top drug lords, including the biggest capo, Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman, a year ago."
"Mexico has captured the most wanted drug lord in the country, Servando 'La Tuta' Gomez, police said on Friday, delivering a boost to a government battered by gang violence.
The 49-year-old former teacher was the prime target of President Enrique Pena Nieto's effort to regain control of Michoacan, a western state wracked by clashes between Gomez's Knights Templar cartel and heavily armed vigilantes trying to oust them.
The early morning arrest comes as Pena Nieto seeks to quell public outrage in Mexico after the late September abduction and apparent massacre of 43 trainee teachers by corrupt police in league with gang members.
That incident triggered Pena Nieto's deepest crisis. Attorney General Jesus Murillo, under fire for months over his handling of that investigation, will step down, a senior government official said on Friday."
Boris Nemtsov, a Political Opponent of Vladimir Putin, Shot Dead in Moscow, Russia
February 27, 2015 (Friday)
Above: AP photo of Russian police near the body of Boris Nemtsov in Moscow, Russia (St. Basil Cathedral in thebackground) in the early hours of February 28, 2015; Reuters photo of Russian authorities moving the body of Boris Nemtsov, Moscow, Russia, early hours of February 28, 2015
Above: AP 2014 photo of Boris Nemtsov, a former deputy prime minister of Russia who was gunned down in Moscow, Russia on February 27, 2015; President of Russia Vladimir Putin
Above: Sergei Kirov, 1886-1934; Leon Trotsky, 1879-1940
"Boris Nemtsov, a Russian opposition politician and former deputy prime minister who was an outspoken critic of President Vladimir Putin, was shot dead meters from the Kremlin in central Moscow late on Friday.
Nemtsov, 55, was shot four times in the back, the Interior Ministry said. A police spokeswoman on the scene said he had been walking on a bridge over the Moskva River with a Ukrainian woman.
Putin condemned the killing and took the investigation under presidential command, saying it could have been a contract killing and a 'provocation' on the eve of a big opposition protest that Nemtsov had been due to lead in Moscow on Sunday.
Police cars sealed off the bridge close to the red walls of the Kremlin and Red Square, and an ambulance was on the scene.
'Nemtsov B.E. died at 2340 hours as a result of four shots in the back,' an Interior Ministry spokeswoman said by telephone."
"Boris Nemtsov, a charismatic Russian opposition leader and sharp critic of President Vladimir Putin, was gunned down Saturday near the Kremlin, just a day before a planned protest against the government.
The death of Nemtsov, a 55-year-old former deputy prime minister, ignited a fury among opposition figures who assailed the Kremlin for creating an atmosphere of intolerance of any dissent and called the killing an assassination. Putin quickly offered his condolences and called the murder a provocation.
Nemtsov was working on a report presenting evidence that he believed proved Russia's direct involvement in the separatist rebellion that has raged in eastern Ukraine since last April. Ukraine and the West accuse Russia of backing the rebels with troops and sophisticated weapons. Moscow denies the accusations.
Putin ordered Russia's top law enforcement chiefs to personally oversee the probe of Nemtsov's killing."
"Boris Nemtsov, a prominent Russian opposition leader and former first deputy prime minister, was shot dead Friday evening in central Moscow in the highest-profile assassination in Russia during the tenure of President Vladimir V. Putin.
The shooting, on a bridge near Red Square, under the towering domes of St. Basil’s Cathedral, ended Mr. Nemtsov’s two-decade career as a champion of democratic reforms, beginning in the wake of the Soviet Union’s collapse in 1991, and just days before he was to lead a rally to protest the war in Ukraine."
---New York Times, February 27, 2015
Reactions to the Assassination of Boris Nemtsov
February 28, 2015 (Saturday)
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Above: Reuters photos of the Boris Nemtsov assassination site in Moscow with iconic St. Basil's Cathedral visible in the background, February 28, 2015
"Thousands of stunned Russians laid flowers and lit candles on Saturday on the bridge where opposition politician Boris Nemtsov was shot dead near the Kremlin, a murder that showed the risks of speaking out against President Vladimir Putin.
Nemtsov, 55, was shot four times in the back by assailants in a white car as he walked across the bridge over the Moskva River in central Moscow with a Ukrainian woman, who was unhurt, just before midnight on Friday, police said.
Police sealed off the blood-stained bridge close to the red walls of the Kremlin and Red Square for two hours overnight, then hosed it down as people came to pay tribute to one of Putin's biggest opponents over Russia's role in Ukraine.
Flowers were piled at least a meter (three feet) high, about two meters deep and two meters wide. A piece of white paper saying 'We are all Nemtsov' stood among the flowers.
'People are afraid to support our movement. Opposition activists receive threats every day and Boris was no exception. But they won't stop us,' said opposition activist Mark Galperin.
A former deputy prime minister who had feared he would be murdered, Nemtsov was the most prominent opposition figure killed in Putin's 15-year rule."
"About two weeks before he was shot and killed in the highest-profile political assassination in Russia in a decade, Boris Y. Nemtsov met with an old friend to discuss his latest research into what he said was dissembling and misdeeds in the Kremlin.
He was, as always, pugilistic and excited, saying he wanted to publish the research in a pamphlet to be called 'Putin and the War,' about President Vladimir V. Putin and Russian involvement in the Ukraine conflict, recalled Yevgenia Albats, the editor of the New Times magazine. Both knew the stakes.
Mr. Nemtsov, a former deputy prime minister, knew his work was dangerous but tried to convince her that, as a former high official in the Kremlin, he enjoyed a immunity, Ms. Albats said."
---New York Times, February 28, 2015
2016 Presidential Election: Results of the CPAC 2015 Straw Poll
February 28, 2015 (Saturday)
Above: U.S.SenatorRand Paul of Kentucky, winner of the CPAC 2015 Straw Poll drawing 25.7% of the vote; Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, second place finisher with 21.4%; U.S. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, third place at 11.5% of the vote; Dr. Ben Carson, fourth place with 11.4%; former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, fifth place with 8.3% of the vote
"Senator Rand Paul won a straw poll of conservative activists on Saturday, giving his potential bid for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016 a boost, and Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker came in second in a surprising show of strength.
Whether the victory for Paul will have long-lasting benefit is unclear since his libertarian views may not have broad appeal in the Republican Party.
Paul, a 52-year-old Kentucky Republican, outdistanced most other potential candidates by taking 25.7 percent of the vote at the Conservative Political Action Conference, a gathering of activists on Washington's outskirts of Washington."
"Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul has won the Conservative Political Action Conference's annual presidential preference straw poll.
Pollsters announced Saturday that Paul won 25.7 percent of the votes in the annual survey, giving Paul his third consecutive win in as many years.
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker came in second, with 21.4 percent. Sen. Ted Cruz came in third in the contest with 11.5 percent, followed by retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson with 11.4 percent and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush with 8.3 percent. All of the other names listed received under 5 percent.
The three-day CPAC conference in suburban Washington draws many libertarian-leaning college students whose views and priorities differ significantly from the Republican Party at large. But it is nonetheless seen as a barometer of certain conservative activists' early leanings.
Pollsters said just over 3,000 attendees voted. Nearly half identified as between the ages of 18 and 25."
February 2015
Super Bowl XLIX: New England Patriots Defeated the Seattle Seahawks, 28 to 24
February 1, 2015 (Sunday)
Above: Getty Images photo of New England quarterback Tom Brady throwing against Seattle in Super Bowl XLIX in Glendale, Arizona, February 1, 2015; Getty Images photo of New England defensive back Malcolm Butler intercepting a Russell Wilson pass to seal the New England victory in Super Bowl XLIX, February 1, 2015
Above: Getty Images photo of Seattle running back Marshawn Lynch scoring a touchdown against New England in Super Bowl XLIX, February 1, 2015; Getty Images photo of New England receiver Rob Gronkowski catching a touchdown pass against Seattle in Super Bowl XLIX, February 1, 2015
Above: Getty Images photo of Katy Perry singing with Lenny Kravitz during the halftime show of Super Bowl XLIX in Glendale, Arizona, February 1, 2015; Getty Images photo of singer Katy Perry performing atop a giant lion during the halftime show of Super Bowl XLIX, February 1, 2015
Above: Getty Images photo of Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson throwing against New England in Super Bowl XLIX, February 1, 2015; Getty Images photo of New England quarterback Tom Brady passing against Seattle in Super Bowl XLIX, February 1, 2015; Getty Images photo of New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick (at left) celebrating the Super Bowl win against Seattle, February 1, 2015
ESPN: New England Defeats Seattle, 28 to 24, in Super Bowl XLIX, February 1, 2015
"Ten years removed from his last Super Bowl win, Tom Brady wasn't letting this one slip away.
Sure, the brilliant Brady needed a huge play by an undrafted rookie to preserve New England's 28-24 Super Bowl victory over Seattle on Sunday night.
But Brady's imprint was all over the Patriots' sensational fourth-quarter rally for their fourth NFL championship of the Brady-Bill Belichick era."
---ESPN, February 1, 2015
CBS News: The Infamous Play The Daily Beast: A Fit Ending to a Lousy NFL Season
ESPN: The Controversial Play Call of Super Bowl XLIX Reuters: Tom Brady's 4th Super Bowl Victory
"Through his childhood, Tom Brady considered Joe Montana his idol, and on Sunday he equaled the Hall of Fame quarterback with four Super Bowl wins to cement his legacy as one of the best to play the game.
The 37-year-old quarterback set a Super Bowl record with 37 pass completions to go along with four touchdown passes, but it was the poise he exhibited with the game on the line that truly showed his brilliance.
Trailing by three points with under seven minutes to play, Brady completed all eight pass attempts as he led the Patriots 64 yards in 10 plays, capped by a three-yard touchdown pass to Julian Edelman."
---Reuters, February 2, 2015
Associated Press: Patriots Beat Seahawks, 28 to 24, in Super Bowl XLIX, February 1, 2015
"The final 125 seconds included a perfect possession by Tom Brady for the go-ahead points, a juggling catch that could have been the play of the year, and a victory-clinching, end-zone interception on a pass — not run — from the 1.
A Super Bowl that got off to a slow start wound up with a 'Whoa!' finish, a lot like the New England Patriots' entire season.
Brady threw two of his four touchdown passes in the final quarter to erase a double-digit deficit, rookie Malcolm Butler picked off Russell Wilson's short throw while Marshawn Lynch watched, and the Patriots ended a decade drought without an NFL title by beating the defending champion Seattle Seahawks 28-24 in a taut classic Sunday night."
---Associated Press, February 2, 2015
The Dow Gained 1.14%
February 2, 2015 (Monday)
Above: Reuters chart showing a Dow Jones Industrial Average gain of 196 points, closing at 17,361 on February 2, 2015
ISIS Video Released Purportedly Showing Jordanian Hostage Being Burned Alive
February 3, 2015 (Tuesday)
Above: Reuters photo of student protesters in Amman, Jordan calling for the release of Jordanian pilot Muath al-Kasaesbeh from captivity by ISIS, February 3, 2015; AP photo of wife of Lt. Muath al-Kasaesbeh weeping during a rally, February 3, 2015
Above: New York Daily News photo taken from video purporting to show Lt. Muah al-Kasaesbeh as deadly fire entered his cage
Reuters: ISIS Video Purportedly Shows Jordanian Hostage Being Burned Alive
"A video released by the Islamic State militant group on Tuesday purported to show captive Jordanian pilot Muath al-Kasaesbeh being burnt alive."
---Reuters, February 3, 2015
The Dow Gained 1.76%
February 3, 2015 (Tuesday)
Above: The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 305 points, closing at 17,666 on February 3, 2015
Jordan Executes Two Prisoners in Response to ISIS Execution of Jordanian Air Force Pilot
February 4, 2015 (Wednesday)
Above: AP composite photo of Jordanian pilot Lt. Muath al-Kasaesbeh (left) and Iraqi Jihadist Sajida al-Rishawi (right)
Reuters: Jordan Executes Two in Wake of Execution of Jordanian Air Force Pilot, February 4, 2015
"Jordan hanged two Iraqi jihadists, one a woman, on Wednesday in response to an Islamic State video showing a captured Jordanian pilot being burnt alive in a cage by the hard-line group.
Islamic State had demanded the release of the woman, Sajida al-Rishawi, in exchange for a Japanese hostage whom it later beheaded. Sentenced to death for her role in a 2005 suicide bomb attack in Amman, Rishawi was executed at dawn, a security source and state television said.
Jordan, which is part of the U.S.-led alliance against Islamic State, has promised an 'earth-shaking response' to the killing of its pilot, Mouath al-Kasaesbeh, who was captured in December when his F-16 warplane crashed over northeastern Syria.
Jordan also executed a senior al Qaeda prisoner, Ziyad Karboli, an Iraqi man who was sentenced to death in 2008."
---Reuters, February 4, 2015
Western Initiatives in the Ukraine-Russia Conflict
February 5, 2015 (Thursday)
Above: Reuters photo of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry at Kiev, Ukraine airport, February 5, 2015; Reuters photo of President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko meeting with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry during a meeting in Kiev, Ukraine, February 5, 2015
Above: Reuters photo of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry shaking hands with Foreign Minister of Ukraine Pavlo Klimkin in Kiev, Ukraine, February 5, 2015; Reuters photo of U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel speaking at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, February 5, 2015
Above: Reuters photo of President of France Francois Hollande during a news conference at Elysee Palace in Paris, France, February 5, 2015; Reuters photo of a car moving in the opposite direction of a military tank in eastern Ukraine, February 5, 2015
Above: Reuters photo of Ukrainian tank being hauled near Debaltseve, Ukraine, February 5, 2015; Reuters photo of shelled building in Donetsk, Ukraine, February 5, 2015
Reuters: Coverage of the Ukraine-Russia Conflict, February 5, 2015
"The leaders of Germany and France launched a new diplomatic initiative over Ukraine on Thursday, announcing they would fly together to Kiev and Moscow with a proposal to resolve the conflict that could be 'acceptable to all'.
The coordinated trip by Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Francois Hollande comes as rebels steadily advance on a railway hub held by Ukrainian troops after launching an offensive that scuppered a five-month-old ceasefire.
Washington has begun openly talking of arming Ukraine for the first time. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry also flew to Kiev on Thursday, although he had no plans to go to Moscow. His likely cabinet colleague, defense secretary nominee Ashton Carter, told lawmakers on Wednesday that he favored arming Ukraine's forces.
Peace talks collapsed on Saturday in Belarus, EU leaders are expected to consider punishing new economic sanctions against Moscow next week, and Germany hosts world leaders at a security conference over the weekend at which Ukraine is expected to be the main subject."
---Reuters, February 5, 2015
Associated Press: Coverage of Western Diplomatic Initiatives in the Ukrainian Conflict, February 5, 2015
"In a new push for peace, the leaders of France and Germany headed Thursday to Kiev and Moscow with a proposal to end the fighting in eastern Ukraine. The surprise move appeared aimed at heading off U.S. considerations of giving Ukraine lethal weapons, something Europeans fear could spark even wider hostilities.
The flurry of high-level diplomacy comes as resurgent fighting in eastern Ukraine is threatening Europe's overall security.
In Moscow, President Vladimir Putin's aide welcomed the new European initiative and said the Kremlin was ready for a constructive discussion. NATO defense ministers in Brussels, however, were ready to boost the military alliance's forces in response to the fighting in Ukraine and Russia's increased military forcefulness.
Russia has vehemently denied backing the rebels with troops and weapons, while acknowledging that some Russians are fighting with the separatists. Western military experts scoff at the Russian denial. The top NATO commander, U.S. Air Force Gen. Philip Breedlove, said Thursday that Russia continues to supply the separatists with heavy, state-of-the-art weapons, air defenses and fighters.
Calling it a 'very critical moment in our history,' Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko on Thursday warmly welcomed U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to Kiev, the Ukrainian capital.
In a joint news conference after their talks, Kerry urged Russia to show its commitment to a peaceful, diplomatic solution to the conflict in eastern Ukraine by ceasing its military support for the separatists and bringing them to the negotiation table."
---Associated Press, February 5, 2015
President Obama Spoke at the National Prayer Breakfast
February 5, 2015 (Thursday)
Above: President Barack Obama
WhiteHouse.gov: Presiden Obama's Remarks at National Prayer Breakfast, February 5, 2015
"But we also see faith being twisted and distorted, used as a wedge -- or, worse, sometimes used as a weapon. From a school in Pakistan to the streets of Paris, we have seen violence and terror perpetrated by those who profess to stand up for faith, their faith, professed to stand up for Islam, but, in fact, are betraying it. We see ISIL, a brutal, vicious death cult that, in the name of religion, carries out unspeakable acts of barbarism -- terrorizing religious minorities like the Yezidis, subjecting women to rape as a weapon of war, and claiming the mantle of religious authority for such actions.
We see sectarian war in Syria, the murder of Muslims and Christians in Nigeria, religious war in the Central African Republic, a rising tide of anti-Semitism and hate crimes in Europe, so often perpetrated in the name of religion.
So how do we, as people of faith, reconcile these realities -- the profound good, the strength, the tenacity, the compassion and love that can flow from all of our faiths, operating alongside those who seek to hijack religious for their own murderous ends?
Humanity has been grappling with these questions throughout human history. And lest we get on our high horse and think this is unique to some other place, remember that during the Crusades and the Inquisition, people committed terrible deeds in the name of Christ. In our home country, slavery and Jim Crow all too often was justified in the name of Christ. Michelle and I returned from India -- an incredible, beautiful country, full of magnificent diversity -- but a place where, in past years, religious faiths of all types have, on occasion, been targeted by other peoples of faith, simply due to their heritage and their beliefs -- acts of intolerance that would have shocked Gandhiji, the person who helped to liberate that nation."
---President Barack Obama, National Prayer Breakfast, February 5, 2015
Washington Post: Obama Creates Controversy with his Remarks at National Prayer Breakfast
"President Obama has never been one to go easy on America.
As a new president, he dismissed the idea of American exceptionalism, noting that Greeks think their country is special, too. He labeled the Bush-era interrogation practices, euphemistically called 'harsh' for years, as torture. America, he has suggested, has much to answer given its history in Latin America and the Middle East.
His latest challenge came Thursday at the National Prayer Breakfast. At a time of global anxiety over Islamist terrorism, Obama noted pointedly that his fellow Christians, who make up a vast majority of Americans, should perhaps not be the ones who cast the first stone."
---Washington Post, February 5, 2015
Salon.com: Right-Wing Backlash to Obama's Remarks CNN: GOP Backlash to Obama's Prayer Breakfast Remarks
The Dow Gained 1.2%
February 5, 2015 (Thursday)
Above: Reuters chart showing a Dow Jones Industrial Average gain of 211 points, closing at 17,884 on February 5, 2015
Shiite Rebels Announce Takeover of Yemen
February 6, 2015 (Friday)
Above: Map of Middle East with Yemen emphasized in bold type
Associated Press: Shiite Rebels Announce Takeover of Yemen, February 6, 2015
"Yemen's powerful Shiite rebels announced on Friday that they have taken over the country and dissolved parliament, a dramatic move that finalizes their months-long power grab.
The development also plunges the impoverished country deeper into turmoil and threatens to turn the crisis into a full-blown sectarian conflict, pitting the Iran-backed Houthi Shiites against Sunni tribesmen and secessionists in the south.
It could also play into the hands of Yemen's al-Qaida branch, the world's most dangerous offshoot of the terror group, and jeopardize the U.S. counter-terrorism operations in the country.
In a televised announcement from the Republican Palace in the Yemeni capital of Sanaa, the Houthi rebels said they are forming a five-member presidential council that will replace President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi for an interim two-year period.
The Houthis also said that 'Revolutionary Committee' would be in charge of forming a new parliament with 551 members. The committee is the security and intelligence arm of the rebel group, led by Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, relative to the Houthis' leader, Abdel-Malek al-Houthi."
---Associated Press, February 6, 2015
Monthly Jobs Report: The U.S. Economy Added 257,000 Jobs in January 2015; Unemployment Rate Rose to 5.7%
February 6, 2015 (Friday)
Above: CNN chart showing U.S. monthly jobs creation from January 2014 to January 2015; President Barack Obama
CNN: Coverage of January 2015 Jobs Report, February 6, 2015
Unconfirmed Reports Claim that Kayla Mueller, an American Held by ISIS, Has Been Killed
February 6, 2015 (Friday)
Above: Kayla Mueller, undated photo (source: Reuters)
Reuters: ISIS Claims American Hostage Kayla Mueller Has Been Killed, February 6, 2015
"Islamic State said on Friday that an American woman hostage it was holding in Syria was killed when Jordanian fighter jets bombed a building where she was being held, but Jordan expressed doubt about the Islamist militant group's account of her death.
In Washington, U.S. officials said they could not confirm that the woman, 26-year-old humanitarian worker Kayla Mueller of Prescott, Arizona, had been killed.
Mueller was the last-known American hostage held by Islamic State, which controls wide areas of Syria and Iraq.
The group has beheaded three other Americans, two Britons and two Japanese hostages - most of them aid workers or journalists - in recent months. Mueller was taken hostage while leaving a hospital in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo in August 2013.
The group's latest claim, detailed by the SITE monitoring group, came just days after it released a video on Tuesday showing a captured Jordanian pilot, Mouath al-Kasaesbeh, being burned alive in a cage."
---Reuters, February 6, 2015
Associated Press: ISIS Claims American Hostage Kayla Mueller Has Been Killed
"Islamic State extremists claimed that an American woman held hostage by the group was killed Friday in a Jordanian airstrike in northern Syria, but the government of Jordan dismissed the statement as 'criminal propaganda' and the U.S. said it had not seen any evidence to corroborate the report.
The woman was identified as Kayla Jean Mueller, an American who went to Syria to do aid work, but there was no independent verification of the militants' claim. The statement appeared on a militant website commonly used by the group and was also distributed by Islamic State-affiliated Twitter users.
The 26-year-old Mueller, of Prescott, Arizona, is the only known remaining U.S. hostage held by the Islamic State group.
If the death is confirmed, she would be the fourth American to die while being held by Islamic State militants. Three other Americans — journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff, and aid worker Peter Kassig — were beheaded by the group."
---Associated Press, February 6, 2015
Lethal Bombing Attacks in Baghdad, Iraq
February 7, 2015 (Saturday)
Above: Wikipedia map of Iraq
Associated Press: Suicide Bombings in Iraq, February 7, 2015
"A pair of bombings in the Iraqi capital Saturday killed nearly two dozen people hours before the city's longtime curfew was set to come to an end.
The deadliest attack happened in the New Baghdad section of the city. Police officials said a suicide bomber targeted a street filled with hardware stores, killing 13 people and wounding at least 30.
The second attack took place shortly afterward in central Baghdad's popular Shorja market. Police said two improvised explosive devices detonated 25 meters apart from one another, killing at least nine people and wounding 25."
---Associated Press, February 7, 2015
Western Powers Seek to Broker Peace Between Ukraine and Russia
February 8, 2015 (Sunday)
Above: Reuters photo of Ukrainian tank in eastern Ukraine, February 8, 2015; Reuters photo of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry arriving in Munich, Germany, February 8, 2015
Reuters: Coverage of Western Efforts to Broker Peace Between Ukraine and Russia, February 8, 2015
"The leaders of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France agreed to meet in Belarus on Wednesday to try to broker a peace deal for Ukraine amid escalating violence there and signs of cracks in the transatlantic consensus on confronting Vladimir Putin.
The four leaders held a call on Sunday, two days after Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande traveled to Moscow for talks with Putin that produced no breakthrough in the nearly year-long conflict that has claimed over 5,000 lives.
After the call, Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko said progress had been made and that he was hopeful the meeting in Minsk would lead to a 'swift and unconditional ceasefire' in eastern Ukraine, where pro-Russian separatists have stepped up a military offensive in recent weeks, seizing new territory.
A Ukraine military spokesman said on Sunday that intense fighting was continuing around the rail junction town of Debaltseve, with rebel fighters making repeated attempts to storm lines defended by government troops."
---Reuters, February 8, 2015
Reuters: John Kerry Denies Rift with Western Allies Over Ukraine, February 8, 2015
"Secretary of State John Kerry denied on Sunday that a split has emerged between Washington and Europe over how to handle Russia, after leading U.S. senators sharply criticized Germany and other countries who oppose sending arms to the Ukraine military."
---Reuters, February 8, 2015
Prime Minister of Greece Alexis Tsipras Announces Plan to End Greece's Austerity Measures
February 8, 2015 (Sunday)
Above: Reuters photo of Prime Minister of Greece Alexis Tsipras making a major speech to the Parliament of Greece, February 8, 2015
Reuters: Greek Prime Minister Tsipras Announces Plan to End Austerity Measures, February 8, 2015
"Leftist Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras laid out plans on Sunday to dismantle Greece's 'cruel' austerity program, ruling out any extension of its international bailout and setting himself on a collision course with his European partners.
In his first major speech to parliament since storming to power last month, Tsipras rattled off a list of moves to reverse reforms imposed by European and International Monetary Fund lenders: from reinstating pension bonuses and cancelling a property tax to ending mass layoffs and raising the mininum wage back to pre-crisis levels.
Showing little intent to heed warnings from EU partners to stick to commitments in the 240 billion euro bailout, Tsipras said he intended to fully respect campaign pledges to heal the 'wounds' of the austerity that was a condition of the money.
Greece would achieve balanced budgets but would no longer produce unrealistic primary budget surpluses, he said, a reference to requirements to be in the black excluding debt repayments.
'The bailout failed,' the 40-year-old leader told parliament to applause. 'We want to make clear in every direction what we are not negotiating. We are not negotiating our national sovereignty.'
In a symbolic move that appeared to take direct aim at Greece's biggest creditor, Tsipras finished off his speech with a pledge to seek World War II reparations from Germany."
---Reuters, February 8, 2015
The Stand in the Courthouse Doors: Alabama Chief Justice Issues 11th Hour Order Against Same-Sex Marriage
February 8, 2015 (Sunday)
Above: Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore; Governor of Alabama Robert Bentley; Federal District Judge Callie Granade
Associated Press: Alabama Chief Justice Issues Decree Forbidding Probate Judges from Issuing Same-Sex Marriage Licenses
"Alabama appeared set within hours to become the 37th state where gays can legally wed, prompting one couple to pitch a tent outside a courthouse even as the state's chief justice made an 11th hour bid to keep the weddings on hold Monday.
Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore sent a letter Sunday evening to probate judges ordering them to refuse to issue same-sex marriage licenses when the courts opened Monday morning. Moore wrote that the judges weren't bound by a federal judge's ruling Jan. 23 that the marriage ban was unconstitutional.
'Effective immediately, no probate judge of the state of Alabama nor any agent or employee of any Alabama probate judge shall issue or recognize a marriage license that is inconsistent with (the Alabama Constitution),' Moore wrote.
Susan Watson, executive director The American Civil Liberties Union of Alabama, called the move by the conservative chief justice 'grandstanding' and predicted licenses would be issued shortly.
'We will see marriage equality in Alabama tomorrow. I don't think the probate judges in Alabama are going to defy a federal court judge's order,' Watson said late Sunday.
U.S. District Judge Callie Granade had ruled that the state marriage ban was unconstitutional and — in a later clarifying order — said that probate judges have a legal duty under the U.S. Constitution to issue the licenses."
---Associated Press, February 8, 2015 (CST)
AL.com: Coverage of Roy Moore's Order, February 8, 2015
"Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore late Sunday ordered all probate judges and employees in Alabama to follow existing state law and not issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples or recognize same-sex marriages.
Couples across the state are preparing to wed Monday morning, when a stay on same-sex marriages is set to be lifted.
On Jan. 23, U.S. District Judge Callie V.S. 'Ginny' Granade ruled the state's constitutional ban on same-sex marriage and recognition of same-sex marriages entered in other states was unconstitutional. She issued a stay, putting her ruling on hold until Feb. 9.
Since then, Moore has asserted several times probate judges who issued marriage licenses to same-sex couples would be doing so in defiance of state law.
In his order issued Sunday night, Moore wrote that if any probate judge defies the order, Governor Robert Bentley would have the responsibility of ensuring that state law is 'faithfully executed.'"
---AL.com, February 8, 2015
Conservative Journal National Review Column Voicing Sympathy with Roy Moore
ChristianNews.net: Pastor of the First Baptist Church of Tuscaloosa Urged Alabama Governor to Resist
The Stand in the Courthouse Doors: Same-Sex Marriages Begin in Some Alabama Counties
February 9, 2015 (Monday)
Above: AL.com photos of anti-gay marriage protesters holding a rally near the Baldwin County Courthouse in Bay Minette, Alabama, February 9, 2015
Above: AL.com photo of Randall Thomley, pastor of Fratwell Baptist Church in Perdido, Alabama, leading an anti-gay marriage rally near the Baldwin County Courthouse in Bay Minette, Alabama, February 9, 2015; AL.com photo of a anti-gay marriage demonstrator in Bay Minette, Alabama holding a sign expressing support for Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore, February 9, 2015
Above: AL.com photo of an anti-gay marriage protester carrying a sign quoting the Leviticus 20:13 Bible verse; Reuters photo of a same-sex couple being married near the Jefferson County Courthouse in Birmingham, Alabama, February 9, 2015
Reuters: U.S. Supreme Court Does Not Delay Same-Sex Marriages in Alabama, February 9, 2015
"Same-sex couples began marrying in Alabama on Monday, defying an attempt by the chief justice of the state's Supreme Court to block probate judges from issuing marriages licenses to gays and lesbians.
A ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday helped clear the way for Alabama to become the 37th state to allow same-sex couples to marry. Justices refused a request by Alabama's attorney general to keep such marriages on hold until the court rules whether laws banning them are constitutional.
'We wanted to be part of history,' said Dee Bush, 40, who received one of the first marriage licenses issued to same-sex couples in Birmingham, Alabama. She and her partner of seven years, Laura Bush, quickly wed in a park outside the courthouse.
Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore had sought to throw up a last-minute roadblock for marriages between gay and lesbian couples.
Late Sunday, the socially conservative justice issued an order directing probate judges in his state not to hand out marriage licenses to people of the same sex. He said judges were not bound by a federal ruling that last month struck down Alabama's ban on same-sex marriages.
U.S. District Court Judge Callie Granade, an appointee of President George W. Bush, ruled in January that Alabama's prohibition on same-sex marriage was unconstitutional but put her decision on hold until Monday."
---Reuters, February 9, 2015
Associated Press: Alabama Marriage Licenses Issued for Some Same-Sex Couples, February 9, 2015
"Alabama began issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples Monday despite an 11th-hour attempt from the state's chief justice — an outspoken opponent — to block the weddings.
The U.S. Supreme Court said Monday morning that it wouldn't stop the marriages from beginning in the state, and shortly after, probate judges began granting the licenses to couples, some of whom had been lined up for hours.
'It's about time,' said Shante Wolfe, 21. She smiled as she left the courthouse in Montgomery with wife Tori Sisson. They had camped out in a blue and white tent to be the first in the county given a license.
The probate judges issued the licenses despite Chief Justice Roy Moore's Sunday night order that they refuse. It was a dramatic return to defiance for the chief justice. He was removed from the post in 2003 for refusing to obey a federal court order to remove a washing machine-sized Ten Commandments from the state judicial building. Critics lashed out that Moore had no authority to tell county probate judges to enforce a law that a federal judge already ruled unconstitutional. He's been one of the state's most outspoken critics of gay marriage; in 2002 he called homosexuality an 'evil' in a custody ruling.
Susan Watson, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Alabama, said she has heard of four counties where judges have refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples."
---Associated Press, February 9, 2015
New York Times: Same-Sex Marriage Begins in Alabama, February 9, 2015
"Amid conflicting signals from federal courts and the chief justice of Alabama’s Supreme Court, some Alabama counties began granting marriage licenses to same-sex couples on Monday in a legal showdown with echoes of the battles over desegregation in the 1960s.
In major county seats like Birmingham, Montgomery and Huntsville, same-sex couples lined up outside courthouses as they opened and emerged smiling after being wed."
---New York Times, February 9, 2015
AL.com: Anti-Gay Marriage Rally in Bay Minette, Alabama Politico.com: Showdown in Alabama
AL.com: Alabama Governor Robert Bentley States He Won't Take Action Against Probate Judges Over Same-Sex Marriage
Washington Post: Alabama's Long History of Recalcitrance Politico: The GOP and Alabama
"Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore’s defiance of a federal court order on gay marriage is just the latest in a long line of bitter states’ rights fights on issues from school integration to the Confederate battle flag — and the latest potentially embarrassing political sideshow for the 2016 field of GOP presidential hopefuls.
In the end, some veteran Republican strategists suggest, Moore’s order barring county probate judges from issuing gay marriage licenses may serve mainly to harden the entrenched positions of supporters and opponents of a legal issue on which public opinion has been shifting with lightning speed, and which the Supreme Court seems likely to resolve by this summer."
---Politico, February 9, 2015
AL.com: The Mississippi KKK Pays Tribute to Roy Moore
TheAlabamaBaptist.org: Coverage of the Alabama Same-Sex Marriage Controversy
Center for American Progress: The Changing American Electorate
The Dow Lost 95 Points
February 9, 2015 (Monday)
Above: Reuters chart showing the Dow losing 95 points, and closing at 17,729 on February 9, 2015
Announcement Made Confirming the Death of ISIS Captive Kayla Mueller
February 10, 2015 (Tuesday)
Above: Reuters undated photo of Kayla Mueller
Associated Press: White House Confirms the Death of ISIS Captive Kayla Mueller
"Kayla Jean Mueller, a 26-year-old American woman held by Islamic State militants, has been confirmed dead, her parents and the Obama administration said Tuesday.
Mueller's family received a private message from her captors over the weekend and the information contained in that communication was authenticated by the U.S. The White House said the U.S. intelligence community has not been able to determine how or when she died."
---Associated Press, February 10, 2015
The Dow Gained 139 Points
February 10, 2015 (Tuesday)
Above: Reuters chart showing a Dow Jones Industrial Average gain of 139 points with a close of 17,868 on February 10, 2015
Anti-Religion Zealot Murders Three Muslims in Chapel Hill, North Carolina
February 10, 2015 (Tuesday)
Above: Charlotte Observer photo of Deah Barakat, Yusor Abu Salha, and Razan Abu Salha, the three victims in the triple murder on February 10, 2015; Reuters copy of Durham County, North Carolina booking photo of Craig Stephen Hicks, age 46, resident of Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Reuters: Three Muslims Murdered in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, February 10, 2015
"A man has been arrested and charged with fatally shooting three people near the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill campus on Tuesday, the school said.
The victims were named as Deah Shaddy Barakat, 23, his wife Yusor Mohammad, 21 and her sister, Razan Mohammad Abu-Salha, 19.
Craig Stephen Hicks, 46, of Chapel Hill was arrested and charged with three counts of first-degree murder, according to a statement on the school's alert website.
The police have offered no motive for the killings. The hashtag #MuslimLivesMatter was trending nationally on Twitter early on Wednesday, with many postings discussing the shooting.
The school statement said police responded to a report of gunshots at 5:11 p.m. local time and found the three victims, who were all pronounced dead at the scene."
---Reuters, February 11, 2015
CharlotteObserver.com: Three Muslims Murdered in Chapel Hill, February 10, 2015
NBC Suspends Nightly News Anchorman Brian Williams for Six Months
February 10, 2015 (Tuesday)
Above: Wikipedia photo of Brian Williams
Reuters: NBC Suspends Anchorman Brian Williams for Six Months
"Brian Williams, the anchor of NBC's top-rated 'Nightly News' program, has been suspended without pay for six months after admitting last week that a story he told about coming under fire while on a helicopter during the Iraq war was not true, the network said on Tuesday."
---Reuters, February 10, 2015
Continued Fighting in Ukraine Between Government Forces and Pro-Russian Separatists
February 11, 2015 (Wednesday)
Above: AP photo of President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko at the site of an unexploded rocket in Kramatorsk, Ukraine, February 11, 2015; AP photo of President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko visiting a shelling victim at a Kramatorsk hospital, February 11, 2015
Above: AP photo of an elderly woman near a burned-out vehicle at a bus station in Donetsk, Ukraine, February 11, 2015; AP photo of inspectors looking over a burned-out vehicle at a bus station in Donetsk, Ukraine, February 11, 2015
Associated Press: Fighting Continues in Ukraine Between Government Forces and Pro-Russian Separatists, February 11, 2015
"Fighting raged in eastern Ukraine Wednesday, killing five people at a bus station in the rebel stronghold of Donetsk, as Western leaders confirmed that they would take part in peace talks later in the day.
Steffen Seibert, a spokesman for German Chancellor Angela Merkel, said she and French President Francois Hollande would travel to the Belarusian capital, Minsk, to attend the four-way summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko.
European leaders have warned that there is no guarantee a deal will be reached with Moscow, which the West says is fueling a separatist rising in eastern Ukraine with troops and arms. Germany and France have rushed to mediate after a recent uptick in violence in the region, where fighting has killed at least 5,300 people since April.
In Donetsk, rebel officials said that five people were killed and nine wounded in a shelling attack early Wednesday on a bus station, where an Associated Press reporter saw one body. Donetsk city officials said in a statement that three people had been killed in shelling overnight.
Officials in Kiev said Wednesday that 19 troops had been killed and 78 wounded in a day of fighting in Debaltseve, a hotly contested transport hub in the region."
---Associated Press, February 11, 2015
Houthi Shiites Seize Abandoned American Vehicles in Yemen
February 11, 2015 (Wednesday)
Above: Reuters photo of Yemini forces near the U.S. Embassy in Sanaa, Yemen, February 11, 2015
Associated Press: Houthi Shiites Seize Abandoned American Equipment in Yemen, February 11, 2015
"The United States, Britain and France moved to close their embassies in Yemen on Wednesday, increasing the isolation of Shiite rebels who have seized power. In a show of bravado against the Americans, the rebels seized the cars of U.S. diplomats left at the airport on the way out.
At the same time, the rebels — known as the Houthis — attacked demonstrators holding protests against their power grab in various parts of the capital, Sanaa, witnesses said. The fighters beat protesters and stabbed them with knives, arrested more than a dozen.
The increasing turmoil comes almost four years to the day since the start of Yemen's 2011 Arab Spring uprising that ousted the longtime autocratic ruler but then opened a political transition that crumbled between the country's grinding forces of tribal politics, sectarian divisions, al-Qaida militancy and succession movements.
The crisis reached a new peak when the Houthis — widely believed to have Iranian support — overran the capital Sanaa late last year. They have since taken over larger parts of the country. In January, the rebels put U.S.-backed President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi and all his Cabinet ministers under house arrest, leading to their resignations. Subsequently, the Houthis, who are followers of the Shiite Zaydi sect in the Sunni-majority Yemen, dissolved parliament and declared they were taking over the government."
---Associated Press, February 11, 2015
ISIS Takes Parts of Town in Western Iraq
February 12, 2015 (Thursday)
Above: Wikipedia map of Iraq
Reuters: ISIS Takes Parts of Town in Western Iraq, February 12, 2015
"Islamic State insurgents took control on Thursday of large parts of the western Iraqi town of al-Baghdadi, threatening an air base where U.S. Marines are training Iraqi troops, officials said.
Al-Baghdadi, about 85 km (50 miles) northwest of Ramadi in Anbar province, has been besieged for months by the radical Sunni Islamist militants who captured vast swathes of northern and western Iraq last year.
Militants attacked al-Baghdadi from two directions earlier in the day and then advanced on the town, intelligence sources and officials in the Jazeera and Badiya operations commands said."
---Reuters, February 12, 2015
Alabama Culture War: Federal Judge Orders Mobile County Probate Judge to Grant Marriage Licenses to Same-Sex Couples
February 12, 2015 (Thursday)
Above: Wikipedia map of Alabama with Mobile County highlighted in red; U.S. District Judge Callie V.S. "Ginny" Granade; Mobile County, Alabama Probate Judge Don Davis
Above: Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore; Wikipedia map of Alabama with Baldwin County highlighted in red; AL.com photo of Baldwin County, Alabama Probate Judge Tim Russell
AL.com: Federal Judge Orders Mobile County Probate Judge to Issue Marriage Licenses to Same-Sex Couples, February 12, 2015
"A federal judge in Mobile on Thursday ordered Mobile County Probate Judge Don Davis to start granting marriage licenses to gay couples, and he immediately took steps to do just that.
The ruling came shortly after U.S. District Judge Callie V.S. "Ginny" Granade heard from lawyers of gay couples who had not been able to get marriage licenses in Mobile this week."
---AL.com, February 12, 2015
Reuters: Federal Judge Orders Mobile County Probate Judge to Issue Marriage Licenses to Same-Sex Couples, February 12, 2015
"A federal judge on Thursday ordered an Alabama official to comply with her earlier ruling striking down the state's ban on same-sex matrimony and begin issuing marriage licenses to gay couples.
U.S. District Judge Callie Granade's order sought to clarify that Mobile County Probate Court Judge Don Davis should follow her directive in spite of a contravening order from Alabama Supreme Court Justice Roy Moore that led many state judges to refrain from issuing marriage licenses to gay couples.
The ruling marked the latest twist in the controversy over gay marriage in Alabama, where probate judges have faced conflicting orders from federal and state courts. The resulting disarray has allowed some same-sex couples to marry in places such as Birmingham, while those applying for marriage licenses in dozens of counties were turned away.
Granade's order applied specifically to Mobile County, where, within an hour of the ruling, same-sex couples who had been waiting in line at a county building began to receive licenses. It was not immediately clear whether judges in the other 43 of Alabama's 67 counties that have refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples would reverse course."
---Reuters, February 12, 2015
AL.com: Same-Sex Marriage Begins in Mobile County, Alabama, February 12, 2015
"The aluminum window shades rolled up at 4:06 p.m. Thursday at the Mobile County Probate Office and Milton Persinger and Robert Povilat got married."
---AL.com, February 13, 2015
Washington Post: Roy Moore vs. Andrew Cuomo in a Heated Interview, February 12, 2015
New York Times: Federal Court Orders Mobile County, Alabama to Begin Issuing Marriage Licenses to Same-Sex Couples, February 12, 2015
AL.com: Baldwin County Probate Court to Begin Issuing Marriage Licenses to Same-Sex Couples
Politico: Profile of Roy Moore, Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court
AmericanProgress.org; State-by-State Examination of the Diversification of the American Population
Fighting Continues as Scheduled Cease-Fire Looms
February 13, 2015 (Friday)
Above: Wikipedia map of Europe and surrounding areas with Ukraine highlighted in green (disputed Crimea region in lighter green); AP photo of burned out Ukrainian military vehicles near Artemivsk, Ukraine, February 13, 2015
Above: AP photos of Ukrainian military activity near Artemivsk, Ukraine, February 13, 2015
Reuters: Fighting Continues Ahead of Scheduled Cease-Fire, February 13, 2015
"Ukraine and Russian-backed rebels fought fiercely across the east of the country on Friday despite a new peace deal brokered by Germany and France.
A ceasefire is due to come into effect from Sunday under the agreement, which also envisages a withdrawal of the heavy weapons responsible for many of the 5,000 casualties in the conflict that broke out almost a year ago.
Kiev said pro-Russian rebels had built up their forces across separatist-held zones since the deal and both sides accused each other of killing civilians.
Two people were killed and six wounded when a shell hit a cafe in the Kiev-controlled town of Shchastya near rebel-held Luhansk in eastern Ukraine, a local official said, adding that other shells had struck elsewhere in the town."
---Reuters, February 13, 2015
Associated Press: As Cease-Fire Looms, Fighting Continues in Ukraine, February 13, 2015
"Fierce fighting surged in east Ukraine as Russian-backed separatists mounted a major and sustained new push Friday to capture a strategic railway hub ahead of a weekend cease-fire deadline.
Clashes appeared only to have increased in the day since a peace agreement was sealed in the Belarusian capital of Minsk by the leaders of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France. German Chancellor Angela Merkel cautiously described the agreement negotiated Thursday as 'a glimmer of hope.'
The government-held railway town of Debaltseve was on the receiving end of dozens of artillery and rocket salvos in the 24-hour period following the Minsk talks, Ukrainian military officials said.
Associated Press reporters Friday observed intense shelling along the highway north of the town, which remains the only land link between Debaltseve and the remainder of government-controlled territory.
The deadline for the warring sides to halt hostilities is set to take effect on Sunday, at one minute after midnight. Interfax-Ukraine news agency quoted Petro Mekhed, Ukraine's deputy defense minister, as saying separatist forces had been given the task of hoisting their flags over Debaltseve, as well as the port city of Mariuopol, by Sunday."
---Associated Press, February 13, 2015
Culture War in the Heart of Dixie: Historic Wedding in Baldwin County, Alabama
February 13, 2015 (Friday)
Above: Wikipedia map of Alabama with Baldwin County highlighted in red; AL.com photo of Kelly Pfannenstiel (left) and Latoria Smith (right) at their wedding site near Stockton, a community in Baldwin County northwest of Bay Minette, Alabama
Above: Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore; AL.com Baldwin County, Alabama Probate Judge Tim Russell
AL.com: Historic Wedding in North Baldwin County, Alabama, February 13, 2015
"Kelly Pfannenstiel and Latoria Smith returned to Bay Minette Friday to make a little bit of Baldwin County history as the first same-sex couple to get not only a marriage license, but to also to follow through with the actual marriage.
It was a moment involving two women who Smith's cousin, Josh Smith of Foley, called 'trailblazers' and 'pioneers.'
The morning started when the couple walked up to a clerk at the Baldwin County Probate Office, paid $40 to get a marriage license and spoke briefly to the media before heading back to their home in Gulf Shores.
But as they left, Pfannenstiel and Smith encountered a wedding officiant, who was waiting outside.
Initially, the couple said they wanted to get hitched on a beach. But that changed with an abrupt offer to get married immediately.
The couple, Smith, and family friend Donnie Coates, left and headed north toward a remote park and church in Stockton. They were married within a couple of minutes."
---AL.com, February 13, 2015
Associated Press: More Alabama Counties Begin Issuing Marriage Licenses to Same-Sex Couples, February 13, 2015
"Alabama's stand against gay marriage crumbled Friday as judges in most counties sided with federal courts rather than their own chief justice, a Republican who once called homosexuality an inherent evil.
Many counties in the Bible Belt state began issuing the licenses to same-sex couples after the latest strongly worded order from U.S. District Judge Callie Granade. She said Thursday that a judge could no longer deny marriage licenses to gays and lesbians, reiterating her ruling striking down the state's ban on same-sex marriage."
---Associated Press, February 13, 2015
Dow Closed Above 18,000
February 13, 2015 (Friday)
Above: Reuters chart showing the Dow Jones Industrial Average gaining 46 points, closing at 18,019 on February 13, 2015
Culture War in the Hear of Dixie: Alabama Supreme Court to Consider Actions to Halt Same-Sex Marriage
February 13, 2015 (Friday)
Above: Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore; Map of Alabama with county boundaries identified
AL.com: Alabama Supreme Court to Consider Actions to Halt Same-Sex Marriage
"The Alabama Supreme Court late Friday agreed to consider a petition by two groups seeking a halt to the issuance of same-sex marriage licenses by state probate judges.
Meanwhile another group, which supports same-sex unions, also asked justices Friday to toss out the petition. And one Alabama Supreme Court justice wrote he believes an order halting the issuance of licenses could inject more confusion and, possibly, subject more probate judge to federal lawsuits.
In a 6-2 decision issued late Friday, the Alabama Supreme Court set up a schedule next week for the different sides to file their answers and briefs on the request by the Alabama Policy Institute and Alabama Citizens Action Program. The court, however, did not say whether it would hold a hearing for oral arguments before responding to the petition.
The order stated the briefs by probate judges should address issues raised by the petition, including whether the state Supreme Court even has jurisdiction to hear the petition.
Answers and briefs by probate judges are to be filed by 5 p.m. Feb. 18 and then ALCAP and API will have a chance to respond by 5 p.m. Feb. 20."
---AL.com, February 14, 2015
Politico: The 2016 GOP Field and Roy Moore AL.com: Franklin Graham's Comments on the Alabama Controversy
AL.com: Profile of Roy Moore, February 15, 2015 Washington Post: Change Comes to Chilton County, Alabama
Salon.com: The KKK Stands With Roy Moore
Salon.com: Roy Moore and His Southern Hate Connections
One the Eve of the Cease-Fire Deadline, Fighting Continues Between Ukrainian Government Forces and Separatists
February 14, 2015 (Saturday)
Above: AP photo of Ukrainian military vehicle in eastern Ukraine, February 14, 2015
Associated Press: Fighting in Ukraine Persists Hours Ahead of Cease-Fire Deadline, February 14, 2015
"Heavy artillery fire roared Saturday in eastern Ukraine as fighting between Ukrainian forces and Russia-backed separatists continued hours before a cease-fire was to take effect in the conflict that has killed more than 5,300 people.
Associated Press reporters saw the artillery barrage near the town of Svitlodarsk as well as considerable movement of Ukrainian forces' armored vehicles and rocket launchers along the road.
Svitlodarsk is about 20 kilometers (12 miles) north of Debaltseve, a strategically important railroad junction city where Ukrainian forces have been under siege by rebels. Eduard Basurin, a rebel spokesman, was quoted by the RIA Novosti news agency as saying that the fighters would not allow the Ukrainian forces to escape the city but would be offered the opportunity to surrender.
Under an agreement reached Thursday, the warring sides are to cease firing at midnight (2200 GMT). However, a previous cease-fire called in September failed to take hold and after fighting escalated sharply in January, expectations for the new agreement are clouded."
---Associated Press, February 14, 2015
BBC: Fighting Continues as the Cease-Fire Deadline Approaches
"Fierce fighting is continuing in eastern Ukraine, hours before a ceasefire is due to come into force at midnight (22:00 GMT).
A police chief said the strategic town of Debaltseve was suffering a ferocious bombardment by pro-Russian rebels.
Renewed fighting is also reported near the southern port city of Mariupol.
Meanwhile, the US ambassador to Ukraine tweeted recent satellite images that he said showed Russian artillery near Debaltseve.
Geoffrey Pyatt also said on Twitter that Russian units along the border were preparing a large shipment of supplies to separatist fighters.
He said that the rebels were now better armed than some Nato countries."
---BBC, February 14, 2015
Deadly Shooting in Copenhagen, Denmark at Site of Freedom of Speech Event
February 14, 2015 (Saturday)
Above: Reuters photo of bullet holes in glass window at the site of a deadly shooting in Copenhagen, Denmark, February 14, 2015; Reuters 2012 photo of Lars Vilks, the organizer of the free speech event that was the site of the deadly shooting in Copenhagen on February 14, 2015
Reuters: Deadly Shooting at Freedom of Speech Event in Copenhagen, Denmark, February 14, 2015
"A civilian was killed and three police wounded on Saturday when a masked gunman sprayed bullets into a Copenhagen meeting attended by a Swedish artist threatened with death for his cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad.
Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt said Denmark was on high alert after a 'terrorist attack' police said was aimed at artist Lars Vilks, who stirred controversy in 2007 with published drawings depicting the Prophet Mohammad as a dog.
The attacker escaped in a car that was found later in the outskirts of Copenhagen. Danish police were put on high alert.
The cafe complex was hosting a cultural event called 'Art, Blasphemy and Freedom of Expression'. French ambassador to Denmark Francois Zimeray, who was attending the event, likened the shooting to the attack on the Charlie Hebdo newspaper in Paris by Islamist militants that killed 12 people last month."
---Reuters, February 14, 2015
Associated Press: Coverage of the Deadly Shooting in Copenhagen, Denmark, February 14, 2015
"A gunman opened fire Saturday on a Copenhagen cultural center, killing one man in what authorities called a terror attack against a free speech event featuring an artist who had caricatured the Prophet Muhammad.
The shooting, which also wounded three police officers, came a month after extremists killed 12 people at a satirical newspaper in Paris that had sparked Muslim outrage with its depictions of Muhammad.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the shooting, which took place shortly before 4 p.m. Danish police said the gunman used an automatic weapon to shoot through the windows of the Krudttoenden cultural center, which TV footage showed were riddled with bullet holes. The gunman then fled in a carjacked Volkswagen Polo that was found later a few kilometers (miles) away, police said."
---Associated Press, February 14, 2015
New York Daily News: Second Shooting Incident in Copenhagen, Denmark
Cease-Fire Deadline Arrives in Eastern Ukraine
February 15, 2015 (Sunday): The cease-fire went into effect at midnight Ukrainian time, hence the February 15th date.
Above: Wikipedia map of Europe and surrounding areas with Ukraine highlighted in green
Reuters: Cease-Fire Deadline Reached, February 15, 2015
"Shelling suddenly stopped at midnight in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk after President Petro Poroshenko gave the order to government forces to halt firing in line with a ceasefire agreement reached last Thursday.
Poroshenko, wearing the uniform of the armed forces supreme commander, said in a televised address in the capital Kiev that there was still 'alarm' over the situation around Debaltseve, a key transport hub, where government forces are hard pressed by encircling Russian-backed separatists.
And he warned that Ukraine, if it was slapped once, would not offer the other cheek.
But, seated alongside armed forces chief of staff Viktor Muzhenko, he added: 'I very much hope that the last chance to begin the long and difficult peaceful process for a political settlement will not be wasted.'
'As a first step I now give the order to the armed forces of Ukraine ... to cease fire at 00:00 hours on February 15,' he said.
Military spokesman Vladyslav Selezynov said the Ukrainian armed forces immediately fulfilled the order and the big guns fell silent in Donetsk and some other parts of the separatist-leaning east."
---Reuters, February 14, 2015 (U.S. Time Zones)
Associated Press: Cease-Fire Commences in Eastern Ukraine, Midnight, February 15, 2015
"The cease-fire period for fighting in Ukraine began one minute after midnight Sunday, bringing slim hopes of a reprieve from a grueling conflict that has killed at least 5,300 people and displaced more than 1 million.
Under an agreement struck last week, Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed separatist rebels are to begin pulling back their heavy weaponry this week to form a wide buffer zone.
But anxiety remains high that unrest could be sparked anew by rival claims to Debaltseve, a strategic railway hub now controlled by the government.
The hours before the cease-fire were marked by ferocious battles as Ukrainian forces undertook desperate efforts to hold onto Debaltseve, as well as the highway leading northward from the town to the Ukrainian rearguard.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko issued the order in a live broadcast for all the country's armed forces to hold their fire from one minute after midnight Kiev time (2201 GMT, 5:01 p.m. EST).
Residents of the city of Donetsk, the separatist stronghold which has been under fire from Ukrainian forces, reported that shells stopped falling immediately after the declaration of the cease-fire.
In an inauspicious omen for the prospects of any cessation of hostilities, rebels have said they will not consider any battles for Debaltseve to be a violation of the cease-fire. Separatists argue that the town has been completely surrounded by their forces and that Ukrainian troops still dug in there should surrender."
---Associated Press, February 14, 2015 (U.S. Time Zones)
Female Suicide Bomber Kills Over a Dozen in Northeastern Nigeria
February 15, 2015 (Sunday)
Above: Wikipedia map of Nigeria
Associated Press: Female Suicide Bomber Kills Over a Dozen in Nigeria, February 15, 2015
"A teenage female suicide bomber blew herself up at crowded bus station in northeast Nigeria on Sunday, killing at least 16 and wounding 30 others.
Most of the victims were children who had either been selling peanuts or begging for money at the time of the explosion, said witnesses.
The bomber managed to get through the security check at the entrance to the bus station in Damaturu, the capital of Yobe state, and detonated herself at 1 p.m. local time."
---Associated Press, February 15, 2015
ISIS Releases Video Purporting to Show the Execution of Twenty-one Coptic Christians
February 15, 2015 (Sunday)
Above: AP still image from ISIS video (released February 15, 2015) purporting to show Egyptian Coptic Christians ( wearing orange jumpsuits) being led to their executions by beheading
Reuters: ISIS Releases Video Claiming the Execution of 21 Coptic Christians
"Islamic State released a video on Sunday purporting to show the beheading of a group of Egyptian Christians kidnapped in Libya, violence likely to deepen Cairo's concerns over security threats from militants thriving in the neighboring country's chaos.
Egypt's state news agency MENA quoted the spokesman for the Coptic Church as confirming that 21 Egyptian Christians believed to be held by Islamic State were dead.
In the video, militants in black marched the captives, dressed in orange jump suits, to a beach the group said was near Tripoli. They were forced down onto their knees, then beheaded.
The video appeared on the Twitter feed of a website that supports Islamic State, which has seized parts of Iraq and Syria and has also beheaded Western hostages.
A caption on the five-minute video read: 'The people of the cross, followers of the hostile Egyptian church.'"
---Reuters, February 15, 2015
Associated Press: ISIS Video Released Purporting to Show Execution of Egyptian Coptic Christians
"A video purporting to show the mass beheading of Coptic Christian hostages has been released by militants in Libya claiming loyalty to the Islamic State group.
The killings raise the possibility that the Islamic militant group — which controls about a third of Syria and Iraq in a self-declared caliphate — has established a direct affiliate less than 500 miles from the southern tip of Italy. One of the militants in the video, speaking English, makes direct reference to that possibility, saying the group now plans to 'conquer Rome.'
The Associated Press could not immediately independently verify the video. But the Egyptian government and the Coptic Church, which is based in Egypt, both declared it authentic.
The Egyptian government declared a seven-day mourning period and President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi addressed the nation late Sunday night, pledging resilience in the fight against terrorism."
---Associated Press, February 15, 2015
Al Jazeera: Coverage of the Purported Beheadings of Egyptian Coptic Christians
Associated Press: Key Events in Recent ISIS History
Cease-Fire in Jeopardy of Collapse as Fighting Continues in the Debaltseve Area of Ukraine
February 16, 2015 (Monday)
Above: Reuters photos of damaged Ukrainian military equipment near Debaltseve, Ukraine, February 16, 2015
Reuters: Cease-Fire in Jeopardy as Fighting Continues in the Debaltseve Area of Ukraine, February 16, 2015
"Pro-Russian rebels pounded encircled Ukrainian government forces on Monday and Kiev said it would not pull back heavy guns while a truce was being violated, leaving a European-brokered peace deal on the verge of collapse a day after it took effect.
The European Union announced a new list of Ukrainian separatists and Russians targeted with sanctions, to which Moscow promised an 'adequate' response.
Fighting had subsided in many parts of eastern Ukraine after a ceasefire came into force from Sunday, under a deal reached last week in marathon talks involving the leaders of France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine.
But the truce appears to have been stillborn in the part of the front where the most intensive fighting has taken place in recent weeks.
Rebels announced hours after it came into effect that they had no intention of observing the ceasefire at the town of Debaltseve, where they have been advancing since January and now have a Ukrainian unit all-but encircled."
---Reuters, February 16, 2015
Ukrainian Cease-Fire Failing: Fighting Continues in the Debaltseve Area of Ukraine
February 17, 2015 (Tuesday)
Above: Wikipedia map of Europe with Ukraine highlighted in dark green
Reuters: Fighting Continues in the Debaltseve Area of Ukraine, February 17, 2015
"Pro-Russian rebels bombarded government troops encircled in east Ukraine on Tuesday and a plan for both sides to pull back their heavy guns stalled, pushing a fragile peace deal closer to collapse.
A Reuters witness near the front line said artillery rounds rocked the town of Debaltseve every five seconds and black smoke rose skywards, despite a truce that has eased fighting in many areas since the European-brokered deal took effect on Sunday.
The rebels said they had captured parts of Debaltseve, which sits on a strategic railway junction, and that some Ukrainian soldiers had surrendered, but Kiev denied this."
---Reuters, February 17, 2015
Dow Closes Above 18,000, Again
February 17, 2015 (Tuesday)
Above: Reuters chart showing the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing at 18.047 on February 17, 2015
Debaltseve Falls to Pro-Russian Separatist Rebels
February 18, 2015 (Wednesday)
Above: AP photo of President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko speaking to the press at an airport near Kiev, Ukraine, February 18, 2015; AP photo of a retreating Ukrainian military vehicle in eastern Ukraine, February 18, 2015
Above: AP photos of retreating Ukrainian military vehicles in eastern Ukraine, February 18, 2015
Associated Press: Debaltseve Falls to Pro-Russian Separatist Rebels, February 18, 2015
"After weeks of relentless fighting, the embattled Ukrainian rail hub of Debaltseve fell Wednesday to Russia-backed separatists, who hoisted a flag in triumph over the town. The Ukrainian president confirmed that he had ordered troops to pull out and the rebels reported taking hundreds of soldiers captive.
Associated Press reporters saw several dozen Ukrainian troops retreating with their weapons Wednesday morning from the town in eastern Ukraine, covered in dirt and looking exhausted. Some were driving to the nearby town of Artemivsk in trucks while several others, unshaven and visibly upset, were on foot.
One soldier spoke of heavy government losses, while another said they had not been able to get food or water because of the intense rebel shelling. A third spoke of hunkering down in bunkers for hours, unable to even go to the toilet because of the shelling. They smoked cigarettes in the frigid winter air and gratefully accepted plastic cups of tea given to them by locals."
---Associated Press, February 18, 2015
Reuters: Debaltseve Falls, February 18, 2015
"Ukraine pulled thousands of troops out of an encircled town on Wednesday after a massive assault by pro-Russian rebels, who ignored a new ceasefire to seize the strategic railway junction.
The fall of the besieged town of Debaltseve was one of the worst defeats of the war for Ukraine's troops, who proved unable to stop an advance by Moscow-backed rebels fighting for territory the Kremlin calls 'New Russia'.
Twenty-two Ukrainian soldiers had been killed in the town in the past few days, the Ukrainian military high command said, with more than 150 wounded."
---Reuters, February 18, 2015
Culture War: Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani Claims President Obama Does Not Love America
February 18, 2015 (Wednesday)
Above: 2014 AP photo of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani
Politico: Rudy Giuliani Claims President Obama Does Not Love America, February 18, 2015
"Rudy Giuliani went straight for the jugular Wednesday night during a private group dinner here featuring Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker by openly questioning whether President Barack Obama 'loves America.'
The former New York mayor, speaking in front of the 2016 Republican presidential contender and about 60 right-leaning business executives and conservative media types, directly challenged Obama’s patriotism, discussing what he called weak foreign policy decisions and questionable public remarks when confronting terrorists.
'I do not believe, and I know this is a horrible thing to say, but I do not believe that the president loves America,' Giuliani said during the dinner at the 21 Club, a former Prohibition-era speakeasy in midtown Manhattan. 'He doesn’t love you. And he doesn’t love me. He wasn’t brought up the way you were brought up and I was brought up through love of this country.'
With Walker sitting just a few seats away, Giuliani continued by saying that 'with all our flaws we’re the most exceptional country in the world. I’m looking for a presidential candidate who can express that, do that and carry it out.'"
---Politico, February 18, 2015
New York Times: Rudy Giuliani Claims President Obama Does Not Love America
"Democrats on Thursday assailed former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani for questioning President Barack Obama's love of country, and urged the potential field of Republican presidential candidates to rebuke him for his comments.
Giuliani said at a New York City event on Wednesday night, 'I know this is a horrible thing to say, but I do not believe that the president loves America.'
'He doesn't love you. And he doesn't love me. He wasn't brought up the way you were brought up and I was brought up through love of this country,' said Giuliani, who sought the 2008 GOP presidential nomination. His comments were reported by Politico and the New York Daily News.
Democratic National Committee chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz said it's time for Republican leaders to 'stop this nonsense.'"
---New York Times, February 19, 2015
San Francisco Chronicle: Democrats React to Giuliani's Attack on President Obama, February 19, 2015
Separatist Pro-Russian Rebels Firmly in Control of Debaltseve, Ukraine
February 19, 2015 (Thursday)
Above: AP photo of a dead Ukrainian soldier in Debaltseve covered by a Flag of Ukraine, Thursday, February 19, 2015; AP photo of Pro-Russian rebel carrying a flag in Debaltseve, Ukraine, February 19, 2015
Above: AP photos of triumphant Pro-Russian rebels in Debaltseve, Ukraine, February 19, 2015
Associated Press: Separatists in Control of Debaltseve, Ukraine, February 19, 2015
"Rebel fighters, many of them Cossacks, roamed the streets of Debaltseve on Thursday, a day after Ukrainian forces began withdrawing from the besieged town. The mood was celebratory, with fighters laughing, hugging each other and posing for photos.
Associated Press journalists drove Thursday around half of the town that has been a focal point for weeks of fierce fighting in eastern Ukraine, finding all its neighborhoods under the control of rebel fighters.
Nikolai Kozitsyn, a Russian Cossack leader and prominent warlord in separatist eastern Ukraine, drove around in a Humvee-like vehicle that had been captured from Ukrainian troops. Other rebels were seen waving separatist flags.
All around lay the wrecked remains of Ukrainian armored vehicles. A government encampment near a crossroads lay deserted and rebel fighters searched through its bunkers and abandoned tents, looking to salvage equipment and clothing left behind.
Two fighters inspected a tank left behind by Ukrainians that they described as a 'gift' from the government troops. They then grabbed a bloodied blue-and-yellow Ukrainian flag lying next to the tank and ground it into the frozen earth with their boots."
---Associated Press, February 19, 2015
Reuters: The Fall of Debaltseve and Petro Poroshenko
"Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has suffered another crushing defeat. Less than a week after negotiating the renewal of the so-called Minsk ceasefire agreement with Russian President Vladimir Putin, his soldiers have come limping out of Debaltseve, a road and rail hub in eastern Ukraine that pro-Russian rebels were besieging even as the talks dragged through the night.
Not only does the fierce fighting cast doubt on the chance for a lasting truce, but it puts the Ukrainian president in an increasingly difficult position domestically. As Ukrainians mark the first anniversary of the bloody Maidan protest and former President Viktor Yanukovych’s disgraceful flight from power, many are asking themselves what has been achieved. Crimea has been lost, the economy is cratering, and more than 5,000 people have been killed in a war with murky origins and little purpose."
---Lucian Kim, Reuters, February 19, 2015
Former First Lady of Virginia Sentenced to a Year in Prison
February 20, 2015 (Friday)
Above: AP photo of Maureen McDonnell, the wife of the former Virginia governor, on the day of her sentencing in Richmond, Virginia, Friday, February 20, 2015
Associated Press: Former First Lady of Virginia Sentenced to Prison Term, February 20, 2015
"Former Virginia first lady Maureen McDonnell was sentenced Friday to one year and 1 day in prison for her role in a bribery scheme that destroyed her husband's political career.
U.S. District Judge James Spencer sentenced McDonnell on eight public corruption counts. The couple had been found guilty of doing favors for a nutritional supplements executive in exchange for $165,000 in gifts and loans. Prosecutors had asked for an 18-month sentence for the former first lady. Defense attorneys requested probation and 4,000 hours of community service.
Fighting back tears, McDonnell apologized to her family and Virginians and said she takes full responsibility."
---Associated Press, February 20, 2015
Agreement Reached on Greek Debt
February 20, 2015 (Friday)
Above: Prime Minister of Greece Alexis Tsipras
Reuters: Agreement Reached on Greek Debt, February 20, 2015
"Euro zone finance ministers agreed in principle on Friday to extend heavily indebted Greece's financial rescue by four months, averting a potential cash crunch in March that could have forced the country out of the currency area.
The deal, to be ratified once Greece's creditors are satisfied with a list of reforms it will submit next week, ended weeks of uncertainty since the election of a radical leftist-led government in Athens pledged to reverse austerity measures."
---Reuters, February 20, 2015
Associated Press: Agreement Reached Regarding Greek Debt, February 20, 2015
"Greece and its creditors in the 19-nation eurozone reached an agreement Friday on extending the country's rescue loans, a move that should ease concerns it was heading for the euro exit.
Athens will get an extension of four months, not six, as it had requested, said Jeroen Dijsselbloem, the eurozone's top official. In return, Greece has committed to make a series of unspecified reforms to be enacted over the coming months.
Friday's agreement was clinched just a week before Greece's 240 billion euro bailout program expires, leaving barely enough time for some member country parliaments to endorse the deal."
---Associated Press, February 20, 2015
The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 Close at All-Time Highs
February 20, 2015 (Friday)
Above: Reuters chart showing the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing at a record high of 18,140 on February 20, 2015
Above: Reuters chart showing the S&P 500 closing at a record high of 2,110 on February 20, 2015
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras Declares Victory Over "Troika"
February 21, 2015 (Saturday)
Above: Reuters photo of Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras at a cabinet meeting in Athens, February 21, 2015
Reuters: Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras Declares Victory in Debt Negotiation, February 21, 2015
"Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras declared victory on Saturday after agreeing a conditional financial rescue deal with Europe and despite making big concessions to avert a banking collapse within days.
With his left-wing leadership pilloried by German conservatives, Tsipras insisted that Friday night's last-minute agreement canceled austerity commitments and dispensed with the 'troika' - European and IMF inspectors loathed by many Greeks."
---Reuters, February 21, 2015
Culture War: Opponents of Same-Sex Marriage Hold Rally at the State Capitol Grounds in Montgomery, Alabama
February 21, 2015 (Saturday)
Above: Montgomery Advertiser photo of a boy on the Alabama State Capitol grounds holding a sign expressing support for Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore, February 21, 2015; Montgomery Advertiser photo of opponents of same-sex marriage holding a rally on the steps of the Capitol Building of the State of Alabama in Montgomery, February 21, 2015
Above: The AL.com photos above show demonstrators, on February 21, 2015 at a rally on the steps of the Alabama Capitol Building in Montgomery, carrying signs expressing opposition to same-sex marriage. Moreover, the signs shown immediately above were labeled with "League of the South" and "Dixienet.org," references to an Alabama-based organization advocating Southern secession from the United States of America.
Above: AL.com photo of Alabama State Representative Will Ainsworth, a Republican representing Guntersville, speaking to the Sanctity of Marriage rally on the steps of the Alabama State Capitol, February 21, 2015; AL.com photo of demonstrators at the Sanctity of Marriage Rally on the Capitol steps in Montgomery, Alabama, February 21, 2015; AL.com photo of protesters agains same-sex marriage on the Capitol steps in Montgomery, Alabama, February 21, 2015
AL.com: Rally Against Same-Sex Marriage Held in Montgomery, Alabama, February 21, 2015
"Roughly 300 people gathered at the State Capitol this morning to rally against same-sex marriage.
Sanctity of Marriage Alabama, an informal group that says it supports 'marriage as defined by God,' hosted the rally at 10 a.m.
The same group held a rally on Feb. 7.
In a news release about the event, the group took issue with the recent issuing of same-sex marriage licenses across the state that began Feb. 9.
The group also expressed support for Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore in his opposition to gay marriage and for probate judges who have refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples."
---AL.com, February 21, 2015
Salon: Roy Moore's Controversial Connections
AL.com: Governor Robert Bentley's Religious Right Dilemma
Culture War: Governor of Wisconsin Scott Walker Says He Does Not Know if President Obama Loves America
February 21, 2015 (Saturday)
Above: AP photo of Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker talking with reporters, February 21, 2015
Associated Press: Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker States He Doesn't Know if Obama Loves the USA, February 21, 2015
"Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, a leading Republican contender for the White House in 2016, said Saturday he doesn't know whether President Barack Obama loves his country.
'You should ask the president what he thinks about America,' Walker told The Associated Press while in Washington for a weekend meeting of the National Governors Association. 'I've never asked him so I don't know.'
Earlier in the week, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani said during a dinner speech, with Walker in attendance, 'I know this is a horrible thing to say, but I do not believe that the president loves America.'
Democrats have assailed Giuliani for questioning Obama's love of country and urged the potential field of Republican presidential candidates to rebuke Giuliani for his comments."
---Associated Press, February 21, 2015
The 87th Academy Awards
February 22, 2015 (Sunday)
Above: Poster for the 87th Academy Awards; Reuters photo of Alejandro Inarritu and others accepting the Best Picture Oscar for Birdman, February 22, 2015
Above: Reuters photo of Julianne Moore, winner of the Oscar for Best Actress, February 22, 2015; AP photo of Eddie Redmayne, winner of the Oscar for Best Actor, February 22, 2015
Above: Movie poster for Birdman; Movie poster for Still Alice; Movie poster for The Theory of Everything
Reuters: Coverage of the 87th Academy Awards
"The dark comedy 'Birdman' held up a mirror to Hollywood and its struggling actors and in return received the film industry's highest recognition on Sunday, the Academy Award for best picture.
Director Alejandro G. Inarritu's story of a washed-up, former superhero actor attempting an improbable comeback on Broadway won four Oscars in its nine nominations, including best director, the second consecutive win in that category for a Mexican filmmaker.
Acclaimed for looking like one continuous shot through a Broadway theater and mixing reality with fantasy, the movie, Inarritu said, came from learning to be fearless in filmmaking."
---Reuters, February 23, 2015
Associated Press: "Birdman" wins Best Picture at the 87th Academy Awards
Despite a 23 Point Loss, the Dow Closes Again Above 18,000
February 23, 2015 (Monday)
Above: Reuters chart showing the DJIA closing at 18,116 on February 23, 2015
ISIS Reportedly Abducts Nearly a Hundred Syrian Christians
February 24, 2015 (Tuesday)
Above: Wikipedia map of Syria
Reuters: ISIS Reportedly Has Abducted Approximately 90 Syrian Christians
"Islamic State militants have abducted at least 90 people from Assyrian Christian villages in northeastern Syria, a monitoring group that tracks violence in Syria said on Tuesday.
The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the militants carried out dawn raids on rural villages inhabited by the ancient Christian minority west of Hasaka, a city mainly held by the Kurds."
---Reuters, February 24, 2015
Marijuana Possession and Use Became Legal in Alaska
February 24, 2015 (Tuesday)
Above: Map of Alaska
Reuters: Marijuana Legalized in Alaska, February 24, 2015
"Smoking, growing and owning small amounts of marijuana became legal in Alaska on Tuesday as a growing decriminalization movement reached the United States' northwest frontier.
Alaska, which narrowly passed the measure in November, followed Colorado and Washington among states allowing recreational use, reflecting a rapidly shifting legal landscape for the drug.
It remains illegal, however, under federal law.
In the District of Columbia, Mayor Muriel Bowser said on Tuesday the U.S. capital would go ahead with legalized possession of small amounts of marijuana and pot plants despite opposition from Congress. Voters overwhelmingly approved legalizing pot last year, but its sale is still banned.
Oregon voters approved a similar measure in November, but the drug does not become legal until July. In Maryland, the state legislature began hearings on Tuesday on a measure to legalize marijuana.
In Alaska, anyone aged 21 or older can possess up to an ounce (28.3 grams) of marijuana and can grow up to six plants, three of which can be flowering.
Smoking in public and buying and selling the drug remains illegal, but private exchanges are allowed if money is not involved."
---Reuters, February 24, 2015
The Dow Closes at a Record High: 18,209
February 24, 2015 (Tuesday)
Above: Reuters chart showing the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing at 18,209 on February 24, 2015
Chicago 2015 Mayoral Election: Incumbent Mayor Rahm Emanuel to Face a Runoff
February 24, 2015 (Tuesday)
Above: AP election day photos of Chicago mayoral candidates Rahm Emanuel (left), the incumbent mayor, and Jesus "Chuy" Garcia (right), a Cook County Commissioner, February 24, 2015
Associated Press: Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel Forced Into Runoff, February 24, 2015
"After failing to persuade a majority of Chicago voters to back his re-election bid, Mayor Rahm Emanuel could face an even stiffer challenge in April against a runoff opponent aiming to consolidate the support of residents unhappy with how the former White House chief of staff has managed the nation's third-largest city.
In a race Tuesday against four challengers, Emanuel discovered it wasn't enough to spend millions of dollars on TV ads, earn the backing of the city's business leaders, and secure the hometown endorsement of President Barack Obama. In order to keep the job, he'll need to win another race in six weeks against Jesus 'Chuy' Garcia, a Cook County commissioner who claims the backing of teachers, unions and neighborhood residents disillusioned with Emanuel."
---Associated Press, February 25, 2015
Salon: Rumblings From the Left in Chicago
Politico: Rahm Emanuel Takes a Hit from the Democratic Left
The Dow Jones Industrial Average Closed at a Record High: 18,224
February 25, 2015 (Wednesday)
Above: Reuters chart showing a Dow Jones Industrial Average closing at 18,224 on February 25, 2015
Marijuana Possession Becomes Legal in Washington, D.C.
February 26, 2015 (Thursday)
Above: District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser
Reuters: Marijuana Possession Became Legal in Washington, D.C., Midnight, February 26, 2015
"Possession of small amounts of marijuana became legal in the District of Columbia on Thursday amid a face-off between local officials and the U.S. Congress over whether the new standards are lawful.
The U.S. capital joined Washington state, Alaska and Colorado in making marijuana lawful for recreational use, reflecting a rapidly shifting legal landscape for the drug. It remains illegal under federal law.
Initiative 71, a ballot measure legalizing marijuana possession and approved by 65 percent of District of Columbia voters in November, took effect at 12:01 a.m. EST. Sale of marijuana is still prohibited.
Mayor Muriel Bowser and other city officials vowed on Wednesday that legalization would go ahead despite warnings from Republicans on the House of Representatives Oversight Committee that the move was illegal.
In a letter to Bowser, committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz of Utah and Mark Meadows of North Carolina, head of a committee subpanel, said a December spending bill had barred the District of Columbia from spending any funds to make pot legal or lessen penalties. Congress has oversight over the District of Columbia.
Bowser contends that Initiative 71 was officially certified before the spending ban. A congressional review period ran out on Wednesday.
The law allows adults to possess up to 2 ounces (56 grams) of marijuana and to grow six plants, three of them mature. Sales are barred but transfers of up to 1 ounce (26 grams) is legal."
---Reuters, February 26, 2015
FCC Approves "Net Neutrality" Rules
February 26, 2015 (Thursday)
Above: Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission Tom Wheeler
Reuters: FCC Approves Net Neutrality Policy, February 26, 2015
"U.S. regulators on Thursday imposed the toughest rules yet on Internet service providers, aiming to ensure fair treatment of all web traffic through their networks.
The Federal Communications Commission voted along party lines, with Democrats in favor, to approve new "net neutrality" rules that seek to restrict broadband providers' power to control download speeds on the web, for instance by potentially giving preference to companies that can afford to pay more.
The vote starts a countdown to expected lawsuits from cable and telecoms providers which argue that the tougher regulatory regime will stifle investments, hurting consumers. Republicans see Thursday's move as a government power grab."
---Reuters, February 26, 2015
The War on Drugs: Mexico Announces Arrest of Major Drug Lord
February 27, 2015 (Friday)
Above: The Guardian undated photo of Servando "La Tuta" Gomez; Map of Mexico and surrounding region with State of Michoacan highlighted
Above: Reuters photo via an undated video showing Servando "La Tuta" Gomez
Associated Press: Mexico Announces Arrest of Major Drug Lord, February 27, 2015
"Servando 'La Tuta' Gomez, who once terrorized western Michoacan state and was one of Mexico's most-wanted drug lords , was captured early Friday by federal police, according to a Mexican official.
He was arrested in the capital city of Morelia without a shot fired, said the official spokesman, who talked on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the case.
Gomez, 49, was the leader of the Knights Templar cartel, a quasi-religious criminal group that once ruled all of the state, controlling politics and commerce. He evaded capture for more than a year after the federal government took over the state to try to restore order. The Mexican government had offered a $2 million reward for his capture.
The folksy and charismatic cartel leader of puffy cheeks and large nose, known to wear a baseball cap and a gray-haired goatee, was a fugitive also wanted in the United States for conspiracy to import and distribute cocaine.
The hit comes at a time when the Mexican government needed a win. President Enrique Pena Nieto has faced a political crisis since 43 college students disappeared last fall at the hands of local authorities, and conflict of interest scandals emerged involving his personal home and that of his treasury secretary. The week started off rough, with Oscar-winning Mexican director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu saying in his acceptance speech that he hoped Mexico could get the government it deserves, followed by Pope Francis referring to drug trafficking in Argentina as a 'Mexicanization' of the country, and Donald Trump urging people not to do business in Mexico.
Pena Nieto's government has been aggressive in capturing of top drug lords, including the biggest capo, Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman, a year ago."
---Associated Press, February 27, 2015
Reuters: Mexican Authorities Announce Capture of Major Drug Kingpin
"Mexico has captured the most wanted drug lord in the country, Servando 'La Tuta' Gomez, police said on Friday, delivering a boost to a government battered by gang violence.
The 49-year-old former teacher was the prime target of President Enrique Pena Nieto's effort to regain control of Michoacan, a western state wracked by clashes between Gomez's Knights Templar cartel and heavily armed vigilantes trying to oust them.
The early morning arrest comes as Pena Nieto seeks to quell public outrage in Mexico after the late September abduction and apparent massacre of 43 trainee teachers by corrupt police in league with gang members.
That incident triggered Pena Nieto's deepest crisis. Attorney General Jesus Murillo, under fire for months over his handling of that investigation, will step down, a senior government official said on Friday."
---Reuters, February 27, 2015
FT.com: Modern Mexico
The Guardian: Mexico Captures Major Drug Lord
The 2016 Presidential Election: Republican Frontrunner Jeb Bush Addresses CPAC
February 27, 2015 (Friday)
Above: Washington Post photo of Jeb Bush at CPAC 2015, February 27, 2015
Politico: Prior to Bush's CPAC Speech, GOP Pundit Peggy Noonan Voices Skepticism About Jeb Bush
Ahead of Jeb's Big Speech, Rightwing Talk Show Host Laura Ingraham Slams Bush and his Wife
Talking Points Memo: Coverage of Jeb Bush's Performance at CPAC, February 27, 2015
Boris Nemtsov, a Political Opponent of Vladimir Putin, Shot Dead in Moscow, Russia
February 27, 2015 (Friday)
Above: AP photo of Russian police near the body of Boris Nemtsov in Moscow, Russia (St. Basil Cathedral in the background) in the early hours of February 28, 2015; Reuters photo of Russian authorities moving the body of Boris Nemtsov, Moscow, Russia, early hours of February 28, 2015
Above: AP 2014 photo of Boris Nemtsov, a former deputy prime minister of Russia who was gunned down in Moscow, Russia on February 27, 2015; President of Russia Vladimir Putin
Above: Sergei Kirov, 1886-1934; Leon Trotsky, 1879-1940
Reuters: Russian Opposition Leader Gunned Down in Moscow, February 27, 2015
"Boris Nemtsov, a Russian opposition politician and former deputy prime minister who was an outspoken critic of President Vladimir Putin, was shot dead meters from the Kremlin in central Moscow late on Friday.
Nemtsov, 55, was shot four times in the back, the Interior Ministry said. A police spokeswoman on the scene said he had been walking on a bridge over the Moskva River with a Ukrainian woman.
Putin condemned the killing and took the investigation under presidential command, saying it could have been a contract killing and a 'provocation' on the eve of a big opposition protest that Nemtsov had been due to lead in Moscow on Sunday.
Police cars sealed off the bridge close to the red walls of the Kremlin and Red Square, and an ambulance was on the scene.
'Nemtsov B.E. died at 2340 hours as a result of four shots in the back,' an Interior Ministry spokeswoman said by telephone."
---Reuters, February 27, 2015
Associated Press: Putin Opponent Boris Nemtsov Gunned Down in Moscow, February 27, 2015
"Boris Nemtsov, a charismatic Russian opposition leader and sharp critic of President Vladimir Putin, was gunned down Saturday near the Kremlin, just a day before a planned protest against the government.
The death of Nemtsov, a 55-year-old former deputy prime minister, ignited a fury among opposition figures who assailed the Kremlin for creating an atmosphere of intolerance of any dissent and called the killing an assassination. Putin quickly offered his condolences and called the murder a provocation.
Nemtsov was working on a report presenting evidence that he believed proved Russia's direct involvement in the separatist rebellion that has raged in eastern Ukraine since last April. Ukraine and the West accuse Russia of backing the rebels with troops and sophisticated weapons. Moscow denies the accusations.
Putin ordered Russia's top law enforcement chiefs to personally oversee the probe of Nemtsov's killing."
---Associated Press, February 27, 2015
New York Times: Russian Political Dissident Boris Nemtsov Fatally Shot in Moscow, February 27, 2015
"Boris Nemtsov, a prominent Russian opposition leader and former first deputy prime minister, was shot dead Friday evening in central Moscow in the highest-profile assassination in Russia during the tenure of President Vladimir V. Putin.
The shooting, on a bridge near Red Square, under the towering domes of St. Basil’s Cathedral, ended Mr. Nemtsov’s two-decade career as a champion of democratic reforms, beginning in the wake of the Soviet Union’s collapse in 1991, and just days before he was to lead a rally to protest the war in Ukraine."
---New York Times, February 27, 2015
Reactions to the Assassination of Boris Nemtsov
February 28, 2015 (Saturday)
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Above: Reuters photos of the Boris Nemtsov assassination site in Moscow with iconic St. Basil's Cathedral visible in the background, February 28, 2015
Reuters: Reactions to the Assassination of Boris Nemtsov, February 28, 2015
"Thousands of stunned Russians laid flowers and lit candles on Saturday on the bridge where opposition politician Boris Nemtsov was shot dead near the Kremlin, a murder that showed the risks of speaking out against President Vladimir Putin.
Nemtsov, 55, was shot four times in the back by assailants in a white car as he walked across the bridge over the Moskva River in central Moscow with a Ukrainian woman, who was unhurt, just before midnight on Friday, police said.
Police sealed off the blood-stained bridge close to the red walls of the Kremlin and Red Square for two hours overnight, then hosed it down as people came to pay tribute to one of Putin's biggest opponents over Russia's role in Ukraine.
Flowers were piled at least a meter (three feet) high, about two meters deep and two meters wide. A piece of white paper saying 'We are all Nemtsov' stood among the flowers.
'People are afraid to support our movement. Opposition activists receive threats every day and Boris was no exception. But they won't stop us,' said opposition activist Mark Galperin.
A former deputy prime minister who had feared he would be murdered, Nemtsov was the most prominent opposition figure killed in Putin's 15-year rule."
---Reuters, February 28, 2015
New York Times: The Specter of Fear in the Wake of the Assassination of Boris Nemtsov, February 28, 2015
"About two weeks before he was shot and killed in the highest-profile political assassination in Russia in a decade, Boris Y. Nemtsov met with an old friend to discuss his latest research into what he said was dissembling and misdeeds in the Kremlin.
He was, as always, pugilistic and excited, saying he wanted to publish the research in a pamphlet to be called 'Putin and the War,' about President Vladimir V. Putin and Russian involvement in the Ukraine conflict, recalled Yevgenia Albats, the editor of the New Times magazine. Both knew the stakes.
Mr. Nemtsov, a former deputy prime minister, knew his work was dangerous but tried to convince her that, as a former high official in the Kremlin, he enjoyed a immunity, Ms. Albats said."
---New York Times, February 28, 2015
2016 Presidential Election: Results of the CPAC 2015 Straw Poll
February 28, 2015 (Saturday)
Above: U.S. Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, winner of the CPAC 2015 Straw Poll drawing 25.7% of the vote; Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, second place finisher with 21.4%; U.S. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, third place at 11.5% of the vote; Dr. Ben Carson, fourth place with 11.4%; former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, fifth place with 8.3% of the vote
Reuters: Rand Paul Wins CPAC Straw Poll, Followed by Walker, Cruz, Carson, and Bush
"Senator Rand Paul won a straw poll of conservative activists on Saturday, giving his potential bid for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016 a boost, and Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker came in second in a surprising show of strength.
Whether the victory for Paul will have long-lasting benefit is unclear since his libertarian views may not have broad appeal in the Republican Party.
Paul, a 52-year-old Kentucky Republican, outdistanced most other potential candidates by taking 25.7 percent of the vote at the Conservative Political Action Conference, a gathering of activists on Washington's outskirts of Washington."
---Reuters, February 28, 2015
Associated Press: Rand Paul Wins the 2015 CPAC Presidential Straw Poll with Scott Walker a Close Second
"Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul has won the Conservative Political Action Conference's annual presidential preference straw poll.
Pollsters announced Saturday that Paul won 25.7 percent of the votes in the annual survey, giving Paul his third consecutive win in as many years.
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker came in second, with 21.4 percent. Sen. Ted Cruz came in third in the contest with 11.5 percent, followed by retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson with 11.4 percent and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush with 8.3 percent. All of the other names listed received under 5 percent.
The three-day CPAC conference in suburban Washington draws many libertarian-leaning college students whose views and priorities differ significantly from the Republican Party at large. But it is nonetheless seen as a barometer of certain conservative activists' early leanings.
Pollsters said just over 3,000 attendees voted. Nearly half identified as between the ages of 18 and 25."
---Associated Press, February 28, 2015
March 2015